The Way We Were
by Aryea
Summary: Nigel and Sydney have gone their separate ways and meet up years later...
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please review, I have not written RH in quite awhile and my skills are rusty. Thank you.

CHAPTER ONE

"Nigel!"

Nigel spun around, startled at the sound of his name, and smiled in delight at the familiar woman waving at him from across the terrace. "Syd!"

Sydney grinned and hurried forward, surprised to have spotted the Englishman here in Mexico. "Oh Nigel!" She threw her arms around him and was thrilled when he hugged her back, hard, almost lifting her off her feet.

"What the devil are you doing here?" he asked as he pulled back, just enough to see her shining face. "Are you after a relic?"

She nodded, still grinning. "I just got here an hour ago!"

"And you haven't found it yet?"

She smacked his arm playfully as he laughed and stepped back. "I'm not that good!"

He stood, smiling brightly at her as memories flooded him. It had been almost 6 years since he had left Trinity to explore a teaching position at Oxford, and a day didn't go by that he didn't think of her. "I can't believe you're here." He glanced around to the table where he had just been about to sit down. "Do you have time for a meal? I was just about to have a bite."

Sydney knew she should be getting on the trail of the relic, but for the first time that she could remember, something else seemed more important. "I'll make time," she said and pulled her satchel off her shoulders to toss around the back of the chair. "You didn't tell me why you were here."

Nigel held her chair for her, and then settled opposite. "I was asked to give a seminar on the Olmecs." He grinned. "My public speaking has come a long way since London."

Sydney laughed as the waitress paused to offer them each a menu and take their drink order. Sydney ordered a glass of wine and Nigel decided on the same. "How long are you here for?"

"Oh, just the weekend, I fly back on Sunday."

Sydney barely contained her displeasure. "So, how are things going?"

Nigel opened his menu and peered through it. "Excellent. I'm really enjoying teaching. I have some brilliant kids in my classes."

"Did you have to check willing to travel on your application?" Sydney teased as she looked at her menu as well.

"Yes, although no one has pushed me out of a plane lately." He paused, set his menu down, and reached across the table for her hand. "God, I've missed you."

Sydney returned his smile. She'd missed him too. She never should have let him go, but could hardly stand in his way when he had been offered the position. To be a Professor of Ancient History at his old Alma Mater; well it was simply the chance of a lifetime and something she knew Nigel had been working all his life towards. Still she knew he had struggled over the decision to leave Trinity and their relic hunting behind.

They had kept in touch via emails for the first few years, but Sydney was horrible for writing back and keeping in touch, with even her closest of friends.

She swallowed back her guilt at having let so much time go by, and batted her eyelashes at him. "I don't believe we've ever held hands before," she said and was rewarded by the touch of rose that entered Nigel's cheeks, though she wouldn't allow him to pull away.

"We did a few times," he managed, struggling thru his sudden embarrassment. He hadn't been teased like this since he'd left America, but then no one could fluster him like Sydney could. He'd missed it. "Usually, whenever we were trying to keep the other from falling to their death."

Sydney laughed, pulled his hand across and kissed his knuckles, before releasing him. "Oh, Nigel. No one can make me laugh quite the way you do."

He blushed again, this time with pleasure. "Glad you valued some of my skills, then."

"All of your skills," Sydney corrected as the waitress retuned with their drinks. They both quickly ordered a local dish, and then returned to their visit. "You made my job so much easier."

"Uh…Professor Fox?"

Sydney and Nigel glanced up at the young man standing beside their table. Nigel deemed him to be no more than 20, if that, and he that fresh eager look about him.

"Daniel!" Sydney smiled. "I'd like you to meet my friend Dr. Nigel Bailey." Sydney wiggled her eyes and emphasized the 'Doctor' and watched the Englishman grin. "Nige, this is Daniel Parkins, my new assistant."

Nigel rose and held out his hand to the man, who was a good foot taller and very well built. "Pleasure to meet you, Daniel," he offered, more amused than offended when Daniel gave him the once over before reluctantly shaking his hand. He'd been where the young man currently was. "Would you like to join us?"

"Ah…no." He released Nigel's hand and turned back to Sydney. "Professor…"

"I've asked you to call me Sydney when it's just us, Daniel."

"Yes, Sydney. I wanted to let you know that everything is set up in the rooms and I've already requested that information about that…er…thing from our…ah friend."

"Excellent I am sure that Ricardo will have the surveillance report for you within the hour then," Nigel assured as he settled back down in his chair and watched Daniel shift uncomfortably to try to hide his surprise and suspicion.

"Nigel knows everything about Ricardo, Daniel, relax." She grinned at Nigel. "They were buddies."

"I wouldn't term him as a buddy, exactly."

"You're little pygmy friend then?"

Nigel grinned even as he tossed his napkin at her. "Insensitive wretch!"

"Why don't you sit down and have something to eat?' Sydney invited again as their meals arrived. "We can start work after dinner."

"But…I thought you wanted to get started right away?"

"I want to eat first, and you should too." Sydney unrolled her fork and knife from her napkin, considering the matter closed.

Daniel shot Nigel a venomous look and then squared his shoulders. "We could work and eat in the room…" His words abruptly halted as Sydney raised her eyes to his.

Nigel hid his grin behind a cough into his napkin. He remembered that look and he felt a pang of sympathy for the poor lad. "You might want to leave now, Daniel," he suggested, almost kindly.

"_I'm_ her assistant now, Dr. Bailey," Daniel snapped at Nigel. "And she certainly doesn't need…"

"Daniel."

One word, a certain even tone was enough to shut the young man up and cause him to visibly pale as he looked back at Sydney, who had not even bothered to lift her eyes from her plate this time.

"Go back to the room. I'll be there when I'm finished here."

Daniel's posture practically screamed that he wanted to argue, however he nodded curtly, gave Nigel a hard glare, then turned on his heal and headed across the terrace.

"He's got it bad."

Sydney sighed and put down her fork, no longer interested in her enchiladas. "I guess I'd better go talk to him."

"No, it's better you leave him be, Syd." Nigel cut into his quesadillas. "He'll stalk about for a bit in anger and humiliation, and then he'll drop into a thick fear of being sacked. He'll finally settle down and realize he was an idiot and will remember for future not to question you again."

Sydney stared at him thoughtfully. "You sound like you speak from experience?"

He shrugged. "You took some getting used to."

Her expression softened. "Was I that hard on you?"

"No, you were remarkably encouraging and accepting, I just didn't see that at the time and nor does he." He took a bite of his food, chewed and then took a sip of wine before continuing. "It's difficult to be young and arrogant and to be slapped back by a girl." He lifted his eyes up to hers, finally. "Even by an exceptionally beautiful and brilliant one."

She smiled at him. "You must have thought I was a bitch on wheels."

"I thought you were magnificent," he replied. "Now eat your dinner."

Sydney took a bite of food. "He's one of the best students I've ever had, and I've gone through four other assistants. By the time he asked for the job I was desperate."

"Do you trust him?" Nigel asked him directly.

Sydney had to be honest. "Mostly. He's mouthy sometimes, a little too eager for action, but he's exceptionally gifted."

"And you see something of you in him."

It was Sydney's turn to shrug and she was startled at how mature Nigel seemed to have become. "He's a little green,but I think he'll be okay with a little guidance and some time in the field."

"If anyone can mold him, Syd, it's you."

She smiled again, seemed she couldn't help it. Nigel always knew just the right thing to say. On a whim she reached across the table again and covered his hand with hers. "I'd still rather have a partner than an apprentice."

Nigel turned his hand over and intertwined his fingers with her as a dash of pink touched his cheeks, again. "Likewise, Syd."

They stared at each other for a long moment, holding hands across the table, communicating without the necessary words, as they once had. So much feeling went into that look, and also, Sydney felt, a touch of regret.

Finally, Nigel seemed to grow uncomfortable and pulled away. "Your dinner is getting cold."

She nodded and continued to eat.


	2. Discovery

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please review.

**CHAPTER TWO**

"Well, here we are,"

"Yes."

Sydney sighed, amused and touched that Nigel had offered to walk her to her room. They'd enjoyed a wonderful dinner and spent almost two more hours chatting and catching up, before Sydney realized she really did need to at least try and get a start in the relic she was here to find. She couldn't remember a time when she'd been so reluctant to get back to work.

"What time is your seminar?"

"Not until eleven."

"I wish I could be there."

"Syd, you know everything about the Olmecs already."

"I know but I like how you narrate." She grinned as she unlocked her door with the card key. "You pull me into the story."

Nigel smiled, delighted. "Thank you, Syd." He glanced inside her hotel room as she swung the door open and tried to ignore the searing regret that was suddenly upon him. "Well…I should let you get to it then."

Sydney was about to agree and found herself reaching out to touch his arm, instead. "Nigel, if you have a few minutes? I could really use your help with something."

Relief flooded through him along with a warm tingling sensation at the idea she still needed him. "Sure, Syd," he agreed, trying not to skip into the room. "I'd be happy to help."

She returned his smile, stepped inside and closed the door, where she immediately tossed her satchel in a chair and went to the small desk where her canvas bag sat. "One of my students found this on a dig in New Guinea about three months ago," she began as she unzipped the bag and pulled out the small, triangular medallion. "It didn't seem to be part of the collection they were unearthing, not even of the same culture, but I distinctly recognized some of the markings as Aztec."

Sydney felt a small shiver of delight as Nigel retrieved his glasses from his shirt pocket, and scrutinized the artifact carefully, turning it over and over in his hand, holding it to the light. No one looked better in glasses than Nigel Bailey.

"Hmm, yes, you're right," he agreed, his brow furrowed slightly as he pointed at some of the shapes chiseled across the stone. "These look more like Egyptian hieroglyphics though."

Sydney nodded and moved closer so she could also study the medallion. "I thought of that, but see here?" Her finger touched just below his thumb, where he was holding the artifact. "Hieroglyphs don't usually have letters inside of them, they're more pictographs by nature."

"And they're not whole either, see how some of the letters are incomplete?" Nigel frowned in puzzlement. "Could be from age, certain spots warn off, but it is two obviously different languages from completely separate cultures." He backed up and sat down on the end of the bed, without taking his eyes of the mysterious piece. "It's rare to run into that. And neither language is quite finished, almost as if there was a missing piece."

Sydney settled beside him. "I thought it might be some kind of key, like the one the Jade Empress wore, but I've spun it, knocked it, tilted it every way from Sunday and even had it x-rayed. If it opens I can't find how."

"Was there anything else with it, Syd? Something your student overlooked or perhaps is still sitting in the dirt in New Guinea?"

"No, I went back with her when she showed me this and we checked the entire area, along with all the pottery and artifacts that they pulled from the ground at that location." She growled and tossed herself back on the bed, but kept her feet on the floor. "I've been over everything, every trace of language and possible connection through Egypt, it isn't there. So I came here to Mexico, hoping that I'd find something, but even you don't recognize it."

"I didn't say I didn't recognize it, Syd," he denied. "I said it didn't look right with the two languages together." He denied. "What we need to do is separate the two and look at them that way."

"Don't you think I tried that? I've separated them, tried to rearrange them, looked for multiple meanings for each symbol, nothing fits."

"Hmm…" Nigel again turned the stone over in his hand. It wasn't a rare variety, could probably be found in multiple hot climates. "Dated?"

"Early 11th century."

"I don't know, Syd." He knew he should leave it at that and give the stone back to her, and yet…that familiar excitement was rising inside him, the instinct for the hunt. It had been dormant so long he had almost forgotten it.

Still, he had a different life now, a life that held different responsibilities. He had no time for traipsing around the world after lost treasure. Swallowing a sigh of regret he handed the medallion back to her. "Maybe Ricardo will have more information for you. What maps did you ask him to get?"

"The ones to Namia's Temple."

"Do you think you'll find anything there?"

"I don't know. I do know that at least two of the words on this mean Creation and Sun, since Namia's Temple was said to be a sun temple to worship the creator, it was the only thing I can think of." Sydney stared at the medallion in her hand and then back at Nigel. She realized she didn't want him to go. "Nigel…"

He looked her in the eye. "Yes, Syd?" He'd almost forgotten how absolutely beautiful she was. Her hair was a little shorter than she usually kept it and was a deep, dark chocolate color, which highlighted her dark eyes. He had never yet met her equal.

Sydney took a step closer. "Maybe we should…"

"Should?" he prompted softly, entranced, not for the first time, at the wonder of her.

She took another step. "It's just…we…I've missed you, Nigel."

"Likewise," he whispered, suddenly finding it hard to swallow. She was so close. He'd missed her being close.

Sydney put her hand on his chest, could feel the thudding of his heartbeat and smiled. Then, she moved her head closer…

A hard knock on the door jarred them both back to reality. They stared at each other, stunned, and slightly appalled at what almost happened. Nigel practically jumped back at least a foot from her.

Sydney ran a hand through her hair, trying to regain her focus and went to open the door.

"Oh good, you're back," Daniel greeted and moved to step inside. "I have the…" His eyes narrowed on the Englishman standing by the bed. "What's he doing here?"

"I asked for his help, Daniel," Sydney replied. "Do you have a problem with that?"

Nigel watched the young man swallow his anger and his pride and again felt a pinch of pity. "I was just leaving," he announced to allow his replacement to save some face. "I'm sure you'll find it, Syd."

Sydney shot Daniel a dark look even as Nigel moved towards the door. She turned to him. "Good luck with your lecture."

Nigel nodded. "Hopefully it won't be a total wash like before."

"I'm sure you'll be perfect!" On impulse she hugged him and kissed his cheek. "Just remember you're telling a story."

He grinned, nodded at Daniel. "Good to meet you, Daniel." He returned his eyes to Sydney and his expression softened. "Keep in touch, yeah?"

"I promise."

He waved and headed off down the hall. Sydney watched him disappear around the corner before closing the door. She turned back to Daniel, who was still looking sullen. "Let me see," she requested and held her hand out for the faxes that her new assistant had brought with him.

"Don't you think I'm good enough?" he demanded suddenly.

Sydney didn't even raise her eyes from the papers. "If you weren't you wouldn't be working for me." She moved over and settled on the bed, placing the sheets in sequence along the mattress to get a better idea of the layout. "And if you ever pull that petulant child crap again you won't be working for me." She looked up at him, her meaning clear. "You get me?"

"I just don't see why you had to ask him. He left you, remember? Why would you even want him involved anymore?"

"Nigel left because of a career choice, not because there was anything wrong with our partnership." She rose, fury mounting inside of her at being questioned by someone barely out of grade school, however her expression remained calm and collected. "And Nigel Bailey is one of the most brilliant scholars I have ever known. Requesting his help is a benefit not a punishment and when you are in this business you will learn that knowledge is key, however and whoever you attain it from."

Suddenly her door burst open and Nigel was standing there. "Wash, Syd!"

She blinked, surprised. "Huh?"

He moved towards the desk where she had put the medallion and snatched it up. "Water! Certain elements react with heat, air and water, so do certain rocks." He turned to Daniel. "Do you have any salt?"

"I…I have some in my room," Daniel began, confused. "It came with my dinner…"

"Get it!" Sydney ordered as she followed Nigel into the small bathroom where he plugged the sink and turned on the cold water.

"It hit me when I was back in my room," he said, his excitement apparent. "What you said about my lecture, and then bang!" He slapped his forehead. "There it was!"

"There what was?" she demanded curious and amused as Daniel returned and begrudgingly handed Nigel the small shaker of salt.

"Salt water, Syd." Nigel pulled off the lid and dumped about half of the shaker into the rising pool of water, then shut off the tap and carefully set the stone in the water. It sank, naturally, and then, began to change color. As it did so, the letterings surface of the stone began to fizz, bubble and erode in certain places to form an entirely new language.

"Limestone!" she clapped his shoulder astounded. "Part of the stone is limestone! Nigel, you're amazing!" She turned her head to Daniel. "Get the camera!"

Daniel ran out of her room and across the hall to his, where he had a digital camera in his bag.

Sydney reached for a towel as Nigel carefully removed the stone.

Daniel returned and handed the camera to Nigel who expertly documented the new markings.

Nigel paused suddenly. "Oh my God!" He looked at Sydney, radiant, even as she made the same conclusion. "It's Sumerian!" they cried together.

"Are…are you serious?" Daniel gaped at them. "But…that's listed as one of the oldest written languages known."

"Nigel, if this really is Sumerian, this could change everything we know about them."

"You said the stone was dated back to the 11th century? That was well after the Sumerian age," he agreed, enthusiastically.

"Which means that they weren't extensively wiped out as we thought," Sydney agreed. "They survived up until that time!"

He nodded. "I know the language to see it, Syd, but we need a real expert on this one."

She nodded and pulled out her phone. "I know just who to call."


	3. Failed Courage

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please review.

**CHAPTER THREE**

Nigel closed his travel suitcase and retrieved his laptop case to place both by the door. He made one more sweep around his hotel room for any personal items, more as a habit then necessity. He still travelled reasonably light, as he did when he worked with Sydney.

He paused and looked out his window as a sad smile pulled at his lips. It had been so wonderful to see her again. He promised himself that he would not lose touch again and wondered how far she was on her hunt.

She had called their friend Luna who was an expert on the Sumerian language and Luna had translated the stone as best she could. Based on the information that they had received, Sydney estimated that they needed to check selection of ruins approximately 50 miles outside of the main city. Nigel had concurred and while he had been tempted to go with her, he'd had his lecture to attend to.

He could not expect Sydney to wait until he was finished, so helped her prepare as best he could, despite Daniel's suffering looks, and then bid her goodbye. He offered to meet her for breakfast, if she had returned before he left, but as he had not received a call, he assumed that she and Daniel were still on the hunt.

He sighed and turned away from the window. "Alright, Bailey," he scolded. "Time to stop living in the past." He grabbed his room key and headed for his door, then as an afterthought, he returned to the small room desk and quickly scribbled a note for Sydney. He smiled, satisfied, folded it into an envelope, then retrieved his two bags and headed out of his hotel room.

He took the elevator down and stopped at the front desk, as Sydney and Daniel had been staying in the same hotel as he. "I'd like to leave this for Professor Fox, please," he asked the young woman behind the desk.

"Certainly, Señor Bailey," she smiled and accepted the note. "Are you leaving us?"

"Unfortunately." He returned her smile as she prepared his payment slip. "You have a lovely hotel and I shall definitely be back."

"I am so glad." She handed him the slip and he handed her his credit card. "Would you like me to call a car for you?"

"Yes, please." He signed for the charges picked up his lap top case to sling over his shoulder. He pulled his key out to hand to the desk clerk, then caught sight of a familiar face a few feet away. "Actually, I may still need this," he told the girl of his key and a spike of pleasure ran through him at the thought he and Sydney would be able to catch up after all.

He grinned and headed over to where Daniel sat at the bar, just inside the front lobby. "Daniel!"

The young man turned, startled and his eyes widened. "D…Dr. Bailey!"

Nigel could smell the alcohol emanating from American and assumed he was celebrating their victory. "How did it go? Where's Sydney?"

Daniel's eyes were bleak and bloodshot, but his expression grew immediately defensive. "I…I don't know."

Nigel released his suitcase and stepped closer, scowling, all traces of humor gone. "What do you mean you don't know?"

"We…were…we were searching…in…in…" Daniel shook his head and ran a hand through his already disheveled hair. " Men…with guns came and…there was a cave in and…" He shook his head again.

Nigel grabbed Daniel by the shirt and yanked him closer. "Daniel! Where is Sydney?"

"Dead!" He shook his head miserably. "She…she must be dead. I…I barely got out…"

Nigel shoved the young man back on the bar stool. "You left her? You're her bloody assistant! You're supposed to stay with her and protect her! She counted on you, damn it!"

Daniel could only shake his head. "I'm sorry! There were too many…they were trying to kill us and…people were firing and…the ground was shaking and…I could have been killed!"

Nigel glared at him with disgust as his heart threatened to rip out of his chest. "You still may be," he warned and yanked the Adonis off the stool. "Come on."

Daniel tripped over his own feet and almost fell, but was startled to find the Englishman's grip was like steel. "I…I've already been to the police...they…"

"The police won't do anything." Nigel paused at the desk again and the young woman offered him another smile. "Sorry to bother you again, could you have a pot of strong coffee sent up to my room, I'll be taking a later flight."

"Certainly, Señor Bailey."

"Gracias." Nigel pulled Daniel with him back to the elevator and practically shoved him inside. He was furious with worry and the longer it took for them to get on the road, the less Sydney's chances of survival were.

They stepped off on the tenth floor and headed down the corridor, Daniel now following on his own accord. "Look, I know you're upset but…"  
"I surpassed upset ten minutes ago, Daniel," Nigel stated evenly as he pulled his suitcase back onto the bed and flipped it open. He pulled out the knapsack he made a habit of packing, and quickly dumped out all the papers, slides and materials from his presentation. "You left Sydney to die. Did you expect me to be happy about it?"

"I couldn't do anything else…." Daniel protested and quickly shut up as Nigel whirled on him in fury. His assumption that this Englishman was mild mannered was quickly dismissed.

"You are her assistant! You stay with her regardless of the situation! That is your function!"

"My function was to help her retrieve relics and to grade papers!" Daniel snapped. "I never signed up to get shot at!"

"Bullox! You wanted action, and then you bloody turn tail and run at the first sign!"  
"I couldn't do anything! I barely got out alive and when I got back I went straight to the police…"

"The police in this country could give a damn about an American woman lost in their wilderness." Nigel turned back to the bed. "You should have come to me as soon as you returned," he growled as he shoved a change of clothes and his cell phone into the knap sack.

"Why? So the great Nigel Bailey could rush in and save the day? You weren't there…you didn't see how many…" Daniel's words were cut off as Nigel's fist connected with his jaw and toppled the young man to the floor.

"This isn't about me you bloody idiot!" Nigel insisted. "I don't care if it was an army of Gural Nataz armed to the teeth! You. Do. Not. Leave your partner!"

Daniel, despite his earlier bravado and physical prowess shook his head ashamed. "I wasn't her partner," he defied and stared up at Nigel. "Don't you get it? I tried, we all tried, to get closer and be what she needed, but no one…" He lowered his eyes. "We were just assistants. _**You**_ were her partner and no one could replace you."

Nigel stared down at Daniel and tried to ignore the slight flutter in his heart the TA's words caused. While it was lovely to hear that he could not be replaced, in this situation he had at least expected Sydney to hire someone she could trust implicitly with her own life.

"I've never been so scared." Daniel admitted. "I…I didn't know what to do and…and I hate that I left her but…" He shook his head miserably. "I'm so…so sorry."

Nigel stared at him and felt his rage ease. He had been in the situation often enough with Sydney, wanting to run away and hide, but too scared of losing her to do so. He opened his mouth to speak, just as there was a knock at his door.

He walked over and allowed room service to wheel in the small tray with coffee service gratefully. He thanked and tipped the older gentleman then poured out a cup.

He offered Daniel a hand off the floor and then the cup. "Drink this," he ordered. "I need you sober."

Daniel dropped down on the other bed and did as he was told. "What are you going to do?" he asked as he continued to watch Nigel transfer certain items into his knapsack.

"_**We**_ are going to find Sydney." Nigel closed his suitcase and moved towards the door. "I'll be back in fifteen minutes. If you're not here when I return, I promise you that I know of several long forgotten places all across the planet, and I will hunt you down and ensure that the next _**relic**_ someone finds is you."

Daniel did not doubt that the Englishman would make good his threat and so stayed where he was and finished up the coffee. He rose to refill his cup, relieved to have some of the fuzz recede from his brain but was immediately filled with remorse and regret.

It irked him that Bailey was right. He never should have left Professor Fox in the wilderness. He'd been so damn eager to partner with her; she had been an inspiration to him over the years and was his most favorite teacher. He'd heard all the stories while studying at Trinity of her past hunts, including the legend that was Nigel Bailey, and he was determined to make a name for himself as well; a name that would surpass and possibly erase Bailey's.

Admittedly he had fallen for Professor Fox, but how could any man resist her? She was so strong and beautiful. So admirable and confident, and so damn intelligent. Watching her flood Bailey with accolades a couple of days earlier had been annoying, but no more so than what he was used to.

In the short time he had been a TA to the great Sydney Fox, almost everyone he met asked after Nigel Bailey. The Englishman's shadow was inescapable. On first meeting Bailey, he couldn't imagine the little fellow capable of any of the things that people claimed.

Even the first night, while he was certainly knowledgeable, Bailey seemed far too amiable in the presence of Professor Fox; boarding on being 'whipped' if truth be told. However, after witnessing Bailey's anger and determination to takeover the situation and rush to find Sydney left him doubting his earlier impression.

He swung around, startled as the door opened and the subject of his thoughts entered with a large bag from the gift shop downstairs. "What's all that?"

Nigel ignored him and moved to the bed that held his knapsack. He promptly dumped out the contents and tossed a new metal thermos to Daniel. "Fill that with what's left of the coffee."

Daniel did so and watched as Nigel quickly and methodically started filling the pouches of his knapsack with protein bars, maps, bottles of water and first aid supplies.

"Do you still have the stone?" he asked as he zipped up all pockets on the bag.

"Sydney had it. " Daniel shook his head. "I remember where we were though. I can show you on a map."

Nigel tossed one of the folded maps on the bed. "Do it," he demanded as there was another knock on the door. "Come in!"

A short, stocky Mexican entered, barely five foot and wearing a Hawaiian shirt and plaid shorts. "Mi amigo," he greeted and moved forward to quickly embrace Nigel. "I was glad for your call. I will help anyway that I can. We must find Senorita Fox."

"I knew I could count on you, Ricardo."

"I have secured a vehicle for you," Ricardo stated and handed Nigel the keys. "It is fully equipped and parked right outside. I have added additional supplies for you." He pulled some folded papers from his pockets. "These papers will get you through any inspection points."

"Gracias, Ricardo."

"You will find our lost lamb and bring her back, si?"

Nigel nodded and returned the man's smile. "Si."

Ricardo turned towards Daniel and scowled. "You are bringing the dog?"

"Yes."

Ricardo grunted and walked up to much taller American. "In this country cowards are shot," He patted the small bulk at his side, just under his long shirt and watched Daniel's eyes widen. "I think this is a good tradition, yes?"

"Shoot him later, Ricardo," Nigel requested as he set his lap top into the bag as well and then pulled it over his shoulder. "I need him to find Sydney."

Again the smaller man grunted, then turned back to Ricardo. "Follow your heart, mi amigo, you will find her." He shook Nigel's hand. "Buena suerte."

"I'll need all the luck I can get, gracias."

Ricardo walked out and Daniel turned to Nigel. "Can we trust him?" he asked. "Sydney said he…"

"I wouldn't speak about trust," Nigel's gaze bore into Daniel. "Sydney trusted you. I won't make that mistake." He pulled open the door. "Let's go."

Daniel stepped out and Nigel followed.


	4. Pain & Persistence

_** DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Thanks for all the great reviews so far, hope to see more! (sigh, yes I am greedy that way! **__** )**__**Terry Kay**__** you can breathe now!**_

**CHAPTER 4**

Sydney awoke to a deep, encompassing darkness, so black she instantly feared she might be dead. Her body protested as she started to move and she realized she couldn't be dead, she wouldn't feel this much pain if she were.

She coughed and spit out the dirt that covered the inside of her mouth then felt around the floor for her bag, her torch, anything that would give her some kind of bearings in the dark hole she was in.

Relief flooded her as her hand touched something cylindrical and she immediately switched on the flash light. The beam was very dim in the pitch darkness. She spotted the wall of rocks that had been their only way out, then carefully spun the light around the cavern. The passage where they had found the relic was also blocked.

Not dead, just buried alive.

"Damn." She carefully rose and tried to ignore the pain that shot up her right leg as she tried to hobble around in the dirt and semi darkness, looking for a way out.

"Daniel!" she called, and then remembered that he had been on the other side of the falling rocks. Had the mercenaries captured him or had he gotten out? She hoped it was the latter.

She spotted a hole in the wall, a few feet wide and bent low to peer into it. She swore at the sight of multiple spiders and old tree roots that appeared to cover every side of the passage.

"This isn't the Temple of Doom," she muttered. She could probably slide through but would really prefer not to. Besides, she didn't know if it would actually lead anywhere and if it didn't, she'd be trapped.

Her light trained again on the two rubbles of rock. The only way was to try and dig herself out and hope that Daniel was on the other side doing the same. She hobbled over to what had been the main entrance and set her flashlight down. She reached forward and hefted the first rock, tossing it aside.

She worked for a couple of hours at least, pushing through her pain, her thirst and her growing despair. Her nails were broken, her hands bleeding and blistering, yet she continued. She had to get out. If Daniel was tunneling through on the other side of this wall, she might only need to move a few more rocks to reach him.

Sydney had to take a break, she was finding it hard to breathe and her leg was hurting badly. She sat down on the filthy floor to take some of the pressure off her leg and immediately pictured Daniel's terrified face when the gun men had shown up. She had seen that look before, on her very first assistant, when she first started at the University. She had wanted to hire a woman, offer a sense of accomplishment to one of her stellar students and pave the way to female empowerment. It had been a horrible mistake.

The young woman, Susan had been her name had talked a good game and seemed a perfect fit. She was well versed in the ancient cultures, spoke several languages, and was a bit of an adrenalin junkie. However, for the entire trip she complained about sleeping in the rough, having to deal with bugs and climbing through the thousand year old ruins.

There hadn't been enough action in it for Susan; she had expected more excitement, more immersion in the more glamorous aspects of ancient cultures, as opposed to the nasty reality of the darker side of primeval traditions. She hadn't liked the eccentric delicacies that were offered in some of the smaller villages; she had wanted escargot, not jam covered crickets or over developed eggs with a dead chick still inside. She wanted to stay on a royal hotel on the Nile, not a flea infested hovel just outside of Cairo, waiting for a bomb or explosion to go off.

And then, on their fifth hunt for a relic, Susan showed her true colors. Every one made their choice eventually, whether to flee at the sign of trouble, or allow the lure of a priceless artifact speak to their purse strings instead of their conscience.

She and Susan, after a grueling search, had found a diamond and sapphire crown belonging to at 14th century queen. Bounty hunters had shown up to relieve them of their find and Sydney had her hands full dealing with them. Susan had stood clutching the bag with the crown, terrified of moving.

When Sydney had dispatched all the trouble makers, she found Susan had run off, with the crown. She'd found Susan a few weeks later, and learned the black market dealer where the girl had sold the crown. It was then that Sydney had learned that she had to watch who she trusted when on a hunt, everyone could be turned by greed and fear.

She smiled and wiped at the sweat and grime on her face. Everyone but Nigel Bailey. She'd seem him terrified, scared out of mind, and in awe at the presence of a valuable relic, but not once did his dedication to her or the relics waiver. Not once had he ever considered selling one of their finds, or leaving Sydney to fight her own way out of a tough situation. Well, he did allow her to fight for the most part on her own, but he was always there to jump in if the table turned against her. Nigel would never have left her.

She shook away the memories and returned to the rocks. She knew she was exhausted and dehydrated, but she couldn't give up. For another hour she worked diligently hoping that the next rock she moved would show her a patch of light that revealed the cavern on the other side, but there was nothing but more rocks.

She swore and finally sat again, grabbing the flash light with fingers that could no longer grip it properly, she was aghast at the blood on her hands. Her leg was killing her, her whole body shook from exhaustion and her blood seemed to pound in her ears and through her entire body. She considered that she was probably running out of air.

Suddenly, she thought she heard someone calling her name and instantly called back, it had sounded like Nigel. "I'm here!" she cried. "Nigel! Daniel!"

She started pulling at the rocks faster, needing to find a way through, then suddenly tensed as a low rumbling shook the cavern again. She tried to dive away from the rubble, but it was all around her from where she had been tossing the rocks aside. Her foot twisted on an overturned rock and she distinctly heard her ankle snap as she pitched forward.

"Nigel!" she screamed as a shower of rocks pounded down atop her. She screamed as one bounced off her injured leg, then another on her arm. She was pelted from behind with all sizes of rocks and felt as if she was in a shooting gallery and she was the target. Still she tried to claw away from the barrage. Something hit her head and she again found herself in darkness.

* * *

Nigel stared up at the darkening sky through the Landrover's windshield and pressed his foot down on the accelerator. They had to find Sydney before nightfall and before that incoming storm hit.

He tried not to think of what might be happening to his friend, what kind of pain she might be in, or worse, how close to death she might be; if she hadn't died already. He shook away those thoughts. If he let himself get carried away he would break down completely. He needed his wit and his strength to find her, he couldn't afford to fall apart, so he had to believe she was okay. She was okay and she was waiting to be rescued.

She was Sydney Fox, after all, and had been in far worse scrapes then trapped in a cave.

They had been trapped together in caves before, had come close to death multiple times and Sydney always found a way out. Sydney always found a way out and this shouldn't be any different than all those times she had managed to rescue them safely.

Immediately his thoughts drifted to when she was kidnapped by Edward Patel. Sydney had needed help to be rescued then, she'd almost died. And then there was Carson who had ensnared Sydney with a magical necklace. Carson would have sacrificed Sydney to revive the Goddess Athena, if he hadn't managed to break the spell she would have died. Lastly was Tslarov, Nigel's most feared memory. He would have killed Sydney, would have convinced everyone she knew was dead.

No. Sydney had been saved in these situations, but not just by him. When he and Cate found her in the hands of Patel, Sydney had already beaten the maniac at his own game. She had fought the powers of the enchanted necklace and written down the words to break Carson's spell on her hand, so Nigel could read them out and break the spell. And Tslarov…well, Sydney had finished him off as well.

No, Sydney would be okay when they found her. She always was, wasn't she?

"How much further?" he asked Daniel who was reading the map that was spread across his lap.

"I…I'm not sure. We should have been there by now."

"You told me to keep going on this road, how far down was it where you and Sydney stopped?"

Daniel shook his head, remorsefully. "I…I can't remember. I'm sorry. I can't remember!"

"Bloody hell!" Nigel pulled off the road and snatched the map from Daniel. "Where was it that Ricardo said the ruins were?"

Daniel switched on the overhead so they could both see better, the skies were getting black from the storm clouds gathering above. "Here," he insisted pointing to a spot they had already passed. "I…I think it was here, but we couldn't find a way in and so we started walking. We found signs of an ancient irrigation ditch and Sydney thought we should follow it to find a way in."

"How far did you walk? In which direction?"

"We were going south, I remember that, but we must have been walking for at least an hour." Daniel jumped as the first drops of rain began to fall. "We'll never find her in this."

Nigel stared grimly at the falling rain which had already increased to pummel the vehicle. He watched the water splash against the windshield and be whisked off by the same pressure of its descent and prayed that Sydney was not somewhere that the water could reach her.

"This is the ruins where you started?" he demanded and Daniel nodded. He looked at the storm again and gritted his teeth. "Right then." He tossed the map back at Daniel and shifted into first as he carefully pulled a U-Turn.

"What are you doing?" Daniel asked.

"We have to walk the same path you and Sydney did. You may not be able to see the ditch from the road, which means we could miss her completely."

"But it took us well over an hour…" Daniel's words were silenced by the look Nigel gave him. "I…I guess if we hurried."

"The storm is going to make it harder, so keep your eyes out." They pulled into the area on the map that Daniel had pointed out and Nigel could just barely make out the tops of the ruins in the darkness. He stepped out and was immediately drenched, but he didn't care. He pulled out his knapsack, which was luckily waterproof and two torches. He tossed one of the lights to Daniel as they moved towards the ruins.

Daniel hurried towards one side of a wall. "I remember we spotted it behind the weeds!" he cried to be heard over the storm as he started pulling at the tall grass around the structure.

Nigel did the same on the other side and they diligently walked in opposite directions of the ruins.

Several minutes later, Nigel found it. "Here!"

Daniel hurried over and they shined their lights down into the small, ancient trench. "Yes! We moved south from here."

Nigel checked the compass on his watch and pointed. "That way." He jumped down into the trench that was already filling with water. "Come on!"

Daniel followed. "It was at least an hour before we came to the opening," he said. "And we almost missed it so we can't go too fast."

"If we go to slow, Sydney could die!" Nigel shook his head. Damnit! He couldn't allow himself to think like that. "If you were going about an hour, we should be good to run for at least thirty minutes before we have to watch out for the opening."

Daniel looked down at his feet, water and mud were starting to cake the trench from the hillside and rain water. "Run? In this? We'd break our necks!"

"You're the athlete!" Nigel snapped even as he started to jog. "I'm just a school teacher, if I can do it, so can you. Now move!"


	5. Into the Darkness

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please review.

**CHAPTER FIVE**

Sydney groaned as her eyes flickered open…was she blind? There was no light, nothing but blackness. Her body felt as though she has lost a wrestling match with Nigel's mountain woman. The thought of him made her smile, but it quickly turned into a grimace as she realized there was a layer of something heavy atop her.

Carefully she clawed her way out of the rubble, not an easy task as she couldn't even see her hand in front of her face. She felt herself sliding, tumbling, her skin tearing against something hard but moving.

Finally she landed on a solid, unmoving surface and tried to catch her breath. She reached her hand out and touched something cool. Her flashlight! She fumbled to switch it on, her fingers were slow to respond to her commands.

A dim ray of light spread through the sparkling dust field and she stared aghast at the huge pile of rocks that she had just come from. It was a wonder she had not been crushed!

She groaned; and wondered if maybe she had. Her whole body was on fire. She could hardly move her right leg and she flushed in a panic as she shined her light upon her knee and saw a bone sticking out. Shit!

She lay back for a minute, the pain and nausea was so intense she could hardly move, but she had to. She knew that she had to move. She shined her torch back towards the original entrance, no way out now. She found the hole in the wall and cringed.

"Oh sweet Jesus," she groaned and immediately started coughing, increasing the severe pain in her chest. She heaved herself upwards, as much as possible with her injured leg, gritted her teeth and dragged herself across to the opening.

A large black spider stared back at her and she wondered if it was poisonous. Her options sucked. Suffocate in here, where her bones would remain until some other relic hunter tried to learn the mystery of the Sumerian pendant, or go through that hole and pray it opened to an area she could escape from, assuming the spiders didn't poison her first.

She shivered. She didn't mind spiders usually, but in this situation, her skin was already starting to crawl at the idea of having to go in there. "I miss you, Nigel," she murmured, sure that he would have been able to help her find a different course. She gripped the flashlight in her teeth and started to squeeze inside the hole.

At first, she was to preoccupied by the pain of trying to get her battered body and broken leg up into the tiny passage. Once fully inside, she had to rest for a minute, and that was when she felt the sensation of the crawling insects. She bit her lip and started to pull her way through, a few centimeters at a time, slowly because she couldn't really see where she was going.

Sometimes the surface moved beneath her touch, other times it was slimy, but solid. She could feel them in her hair, skimming around her arms and hands; and at one point she was sure she felt something slip in between the exposed bone in her leg and work its way inside.

She fell out of the opening on the other side screaming and frantically beat away all remaining creepy crawlies, then attempted to spit out the taste of creatures in her mouth. The retching soon became violent and she spewed what little liquid was in her system.

She felt something on her leg again and snatched her torch back up. She illuminated the wounded leg with a weak, slowly dying beam of light and confirmed the sight of a bone sticking out. A pool of blood surrounded the hole in her leg but she could see no spiders crawling around it. She thought she saw the skin of her thigh bubble up slightly and was suddenly certain something was inside her leg. She could almost feel it moving up her thigh.

Tears streamed down her face as she pulled out her knife, still thankfully in her boot, and sliced at the clean flesh of her leg, trying to find the offender. She could not rid herself of the feeling that some insect was working its way up through her nervous system, and it wasn't too long before her agony refused to be ignored.

_**Am I still alive?  
Yeah, and it still looks like you have all your teeth.  
Well, that's something to be grateful for.**_

Sydney collapsed onto her stomach as the words floated inside her memory. She didn't want to die alone.

_**Sydney! I mean really! Groveling on the ground is hardly dignified.**_

Sydney looked sideways as Nigel appeared in front of her. His beautiful blue green eyes twinkled at her and his shy, upturned mouth smiled encouragingly.

_**After all, you are the Great Sydney Fox.**_

Sydney reached out towards him. "Nigel," she whimpered. "Please, help me!"

_**I love you, Sydney.**_

"Nigel…." Sydney could no longer take the pain, she felt her body shutting down and her mind closing itself off to drift in the darkness that wanted to consume her. "Love…you…"

_**Well, come on then. Let's get to it.**_

Giddy from dehydration and pain, she tried to listen to her friend and managed to pull herself up again. She shook off the sense of defeat and used her light to survey her surroundings. A ceiling of rock was only about five feet above her and solid walls all the way around her. Enormous cobwebs covered what looked like a giant altar, and on the altar appeared to be a selection of stone tablets.

A weak sensation of excitement filled her, were they Sumerian? She tried to pull herself towards it, bit her lip at the agony each separate movement caused her. Maybe there was a hidden passage on the altar? A way out that didn't involve going back to that horrifying hole?

_**Sydney? Sydney!**_

"Coming…coming, Nigel…" She reached up for the edge of the altar, to lever herself off the floor, but her hand passed right through the stone and she fell hard on her stomach. She looked up, bewildered, and reached again for the altar, and once more her hand fell through nothing.

"No…" She pulled herself closer still and her hand touched the something cool and terrifyingly familiar. "Wha…" She snatched her hand back as her hallucination faded and she stared into the remains of the last person who had been trapped inside this cave as a large centipede crawled between the two empty eye sockets of the skull and moved towards her.

"NIGEL!"


	6. Faith and Fear

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Thanks Hazygirl and The Saga for reviewing the last chapter, I really, really appreciate it! Please, please, if you are enjoying the story review it, otherwise I will not know to continue. Thanks **___

**CHAPTER 6**

"Are you sure that it was south?" Nigel demanded as he and Daniel continued to search for an opening along the trench. The rain had finally let up, but they were both ankle deep in water and soaked to the skin.

Daniel swept the hair out of his eyes. He wasn't sure of anything anymore. It felt as though they had been walking for hours and he was cold, wet and exhausted. "Maybe...maybe the cave-in destroyed the entrance. M...maybe those guys did something." He shook his head. "It's been over forty-eight hours...It's hopeless."

Nigel stared at him, aware that the chances Sydney had survived the cave in were slim, and having to wait all this time without medical attention, food or water lessened her chances even more. He shrugged off the gloom. This was Sydney and she was a survivor. She would never give up on him, so he wouldn't give up on her.

"You're hopeless," he tossed at Daniel and turned away. "Stay if you want, but I intend to find Sydney, with or without your help."

Nigel climbed out of the ancient drainage ditch and headed back the way they had come, back towards the ruins. They had to have missed something. He shined his light along the ditch and the ground surrounding it.

It was already getting dark and so it would be that much easier to miss the opening Daniel and Sydney had found. "You have to be okay, Syd." He was surprised by a sudden spark of moisture in his eyes at the idea that she wasn't. He couldn't lose her.

What a fool he had been to leave her, to have lost touch as they had. She was his dearest friend, his favorite mentor, his partner in all things that mattered. Almost ten years together and although the decision to return to London had been a difficult one, in the end it had been Sydney that helped him to walk away. Her encouragement, her excitement at the opportunity presented to him and her unwavering faith in his abilities to accomplish all things and made the decision for both of them.

He should be with her. If he hadn't left he would be with her and they would have found a way. They would have seen the trouble coming and would have found a way out of the situation. They would have retrieved the relic and beaten the bad guys. Just as they always did.

It started to rain again and Nigel suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of loss as the water washed away any possible evidence of Sydney and Daniel's earlier visit, making the task of finding the opening now close to impossible.

"I should be with you," he whispered as a vision of Sydney's battered and broken body wormed its way through his defenses. Dear God! His torch dropped to the ground and his legs buckled into the mud. "I've never asked anything of you, I...I'm still not even sure you're there, but please...in the name of all that is right and good in the world, p...please let her be okay."

He covered his face and rocked back and forth, trapped in his own misery his own fear. "Please...Please...God please." His face was wet, from rain and his own tears. He couldn't live if Sydney wasn't in this world anymore. "Sydney….you have to be okay…"

Nigel felt a strong hand on his shoulder and looked back at Daniel, who was offering him a hand up.

"Let's go find her," he offered firmly. "We can't leave her out here alone."

Nigel stared at the younger man, both seemingly prepared for what they might find, but determined to bring Sydney home, regardless of her condition. He wiped at his face, then grasped Daniel's hand, and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet; ashamed of his brief moment of despair. He nodded, swiped his hair out of his eyes and accepted the torch he had dropped from Daniel.

"Thank you, Daniel," he offered quietly as they pressed on. "I…I just lost myself for a moment."

Daniel nodded, for he too had lost faith. Even now he did not believe they would find Sydney Fox alive, but the sight of the legendary Nigel Bailey, shaken and sobbing in the mud had made him ashamed to have voiced his fears.

If you listened to the stories, and Daniel had, this man never gave up. The team of Fox and Bailey had faced death multiple times and beat outstanding odds on a daily basis. Nigel Bailey had never doubted Sydney Fox, and while some of the stories had surely been exaggerated; Daniel had no doubt that a large portion of the legend that was Nigel Bailey was true. That became clear the moment Daniel mentioned Sydney had gone missing.

Daniel felt ashamed for being jealous of a legend, ashamed for causing that legend to break, even if only for a moment. He had tested the Englishman's faith and he was sorry for it. Bailey had an inner strength that far surpassed his quiet, polite demeanor and anyone could see that his love and admiration for Sydney Fox was unparallel.

In the end, however, Bailey was just a man, desperate to find his best friend and partner, even after years apart. Daniel's job was to look after Sydney, to help her, and he had let his fear get in the way of doing that job. He had let her down in a way that Nigel Bailey never would have.

"We must have gone by it," Nigel insisted, the determination back in his voice. "I don't think…"

"Nigel!" Daniel's hand snapped out, instinctively, even as the ground gave away beneath Nigel's feet, leaving him hanging over almost a twenty foot drop.

"Bloody hell!" Nigel swore as Daniel helped him out of the hole. "Thank you!"

Daniel shined his light down into the hole. "I…I think…I think this is one of the chambers we were in!"

Nigel remained on his knees and used his own light to shine down. "Sydney!" he yelled. "Sydney, are you down there?"

"Maybe it's just a sink hole?" Daniel retracted, even as Nigel slipped his pack off his back and started pulling out a length of rope.

"It's as good a place as any to start." He tossed an end of rope to Daniel. "Find something to tie that to."

Daniel moved off in search of a solid structure as Nigel pulled his pack back on and peered down the hole again. "Sydney! Sydney!"

There was no answer but that did not deter him. Daniel returned and Nigel allowed the remainder of the rope to drop into the hole. He absolutely hated repelling of any kind, but at least he had gotten better at it over the years.

"I'll go first," he said as he slipped his torch into his pocket and slid a leg over the hole. "Keep your light shining down to light my way."

Daniel nodded and Nigel gripped his wrist, hard. They stared at each other meaningfully and Daniel had no doubt what Nigel was thinking. "I'll be right behind you," he promised.

Nigel took a deep breath and slipped over into the darkness. He slowly descended the pit, Daniel's flashlight beam bounced off dark earth and nothing else. Nigel felt as though he were climbing down into his own grave.

It seemed to take forever, but finally his feet touched bottom with a sudden clump. "Thank Christ!" He quickly pulled out his torch and looked around. There was a massive pile of rubble to one side and what looked like solid walls all the way around. He tugged on the rope to let Daniel know it climb down and moved further into the cavern.

He spotted something cloth-like and moved towards it. Sydney's satchel! "Sydney!" he cried again and surveyed the darkness desperately. "Syd!" He spotted the tunnel in the wall, just as Daniel dropped to the floor behind him.

"You don't think she went in there do you?" Daniel asked as they both shined their lights into the spider infested tunnel. He shivered and pulled back.

"She may not have had a choice." Nigel pulled off his pack again, unzipped one of the pockets, and pulled out three flares. With a sharp snap and crackle one lit the cavern with a reddish glow. "We'll go through as fast as we can." He tossed one of the flares to Daniel and slipped on his pack again "This should keep them back."

Daniel nodded and lit his flare, even as Nigel started into the tunnel. It was a tight fit with his pack, but he had no idea where it might lead so he didn't want to leave it behind.

Daniel shivered once more then quickly followed. The insects seemed to keep away from the light of the flare, though there were one or two that came out to inspect the men's progress.


	7. Out of the Darkness

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please, please review! Thanks **_

**CHAPTER 7**

Nigel half climbed, half fell, out the other side and immediately spotted a figure in the reddish glow of his flare.

"Syd!" He rushed to the still form lying in the dirt and filth of the cavern floor. He slid to a halt on his knees beside her and carefully turned her over into his lap. "Sydney?"

"Is she alive?" Daniel asked, anxiously pulling out his flashlight as the flares were already starting to dim.

Nigel's heart thudded in his chest as he placed two fingers at the junction of Sydney's neck. A pulse, threadbare and getting weaker. He carefully shrugged off his pack and tossed it to Daniel. "Grab a bottle of water!" he snapped as he pulled his over-shirt off and made a pillow to put Sydney's head upon. "Sydney?" He pushed the damp strings of hair away from her face. "Syd…It's, Nigel. Can you hear me?"

Daniel propped one of the flashlights on a rock, so Nigel could still see. "Here." He handed Nigel the bottle of water from the pack, and his hand shook as he ran the light down over the Professor.

Her clothes were filthy and torn, there were cuts on her arms and it looked like several bad ones on her leg, atop a piece of bone poking through. Her face was so covered with grime and dirt he couldn't tell what damage might have been done to her. "God. I never should have left her."

Nigel was too upset to either soothe or berate the younger man. He opened the bottle of water, carefully held her head up and gently pried Sydney's swollen, cracked lips apart. "Drink, Sydney. You need water."

Most of the liquid seemed to spill out the corners of her mouth and down over her neck, leaving streaks in the dirt on her skin, but Nigel continued to try and get some of the water inside her. "Syd, you have to wake up, come on."

"Is she going to be okay?"

"Do I look like bloody Dr. McCoy?" Nigel snapped at him and had to close his eyes in an effort to regain some control. He wanted to kill Daniel, and rarely did he feel that way about anyone. Sydney was alive, he had to concentrate on that and not how horrifying she looked. "Use your belt and tie off her leg, then see what you can do to clean those cuts."

Daniel immediately started rummaging in the knapsack for the first aid kit as Nigel attempted to bring Sydney around. He knelt down and set his torch at a tilted angle to allow him to see, then created a tourniquet for Sydney's right leg. There was a large bubble of blood just below her knee that had crusted over from the dirt. Once he started tending to it, he knew it would start bleeding again.

"Sydney, you have to wake up," Nigel encouraged as he managed to get a bit more water into her mouth. "Come on, we have relics to find and papers to grade, you're not going to leave me to do that are you?" No response, not even a flicker of her lashes.

Daniel glanced at them then went back to his task. Sydney was dead or soon would be and it was his fault. Tending to her wounds was a fruitless gesture, but he would do as Nigel had asked.

"Come on, Syd. Please wake up." Nigel gently poured some water into his hand and ladled it over Sydney's face, trying to get some of the dirt and blood off. "I'm sorry we're late. We got here as soon as we could."

Nothing. Sydney didn't even twitch and Nigel found that he was watching the whispered movement of her chest with an impending sense of dread. "Syd, come on." He gently smacked at her face then harder but that seemed to stop her feeble breathing all together. "Damn it, Sydney! Don't you do this to me!"

Daniel watched with apprehension as the Englishman started CPR on Sydney Fox and felt tears form in the corner of his eyes. "She's gone?"

"No!" Nigel pinched Sydney's nose and breathed life into her. "Breathe, Sydney. Breathe!" He pumped her chest three times and then returned to her mouth, trying to keep his own nausea back at the thought of her dying.

Suddenly he screamed. "DaViega is here!"

Daniel jumped at the sudden hysteria in the Englishman's voice and wondered if Nigel as had lost his mind.

"He has a gun!" Nigel pumped her chest and breathed into her mouth, then cried. "He's got the relic and is going to kill us!"

Sydney Fox gasped in the air coming from Nigel's mouth, as he touched his lips to hers once more. "Uhhh…Da..vi…"

Nigel's eyes closed briefly as her breath feathered his face and squeezed back tears of joy. "That's it," he croaked, his voice heavy with emotion as he brushed her hair back from her face. "Come on back, Syd."

Daniel was amazed when Professor Fox started to stir. "Who's DaViega?" he whispered.

"Someone she hates very much." Nigel set water down and tapped Sydney's cheeks as he continued to cradle her head. "You have to wake up, Syd. You have to save us from DaViega." Nigel's heart somersaulted as Sydney moaned and her lashes flickered open.

"Nigel!" she moaned even as she subconsciously struggled to sit up, to rise and confront her nemesis. "I'm coming!"

"Easy, Syd." He pulled her back from her sudden move to rise. "It's okay, we're safe."

"Da…vie..ga."

"He's gone."

Sydney immediately closed her eyes and her body went slack.

"NO! Sydney, you have to stay awake, come on."

Her eyes flickered a second time and she looked up into Nigel's concerned gaze. "Ni…gel?"

He smiled at her, despite the trembling of his lips and pushed her hair back from her face again. "I'm here, Syd."

She reached a shaky hand up to touch his face as the memory of the last few hours returned in a blur of horrible images. "Nigel." A tear slipped out of the corner of her eye. "Are you…real?"

Nigel covered her hand with his and brought both to his cheek, fighting back his tears. "I'm here, Syd." It was breaking his heart to see her cry, he'd never, in all the years they'd been together seen her shed a single tear. "I've got you."

She slowly smiled. "I…knew you'd find…me." In her heart she knew, but her mind had made her doubt and she felt guilty for it.

Nigel reached for the water bottle. "Here, you need to drink this, you're dehydrated."

Sydney's eyes never left his as he held the bottle to her lips. She put her hand over his again, helping him hold the bottle for her. She took as many sips as she could before her wretchedly dry throat started to heave it back up and she had to push it away.

"We need to get you out of here," Nigel instructed as he gently laid her head back onto the make-shift cushion of his shirt. "Daniel is tending to your leg, so it might hurt."

"Daniel?" Sydney reached out her hand and Daniel appeared in her line of sight. Her joy at seeing him alive registered on her face. "Thank God, you're…okay."

Daniel lowered his head ashamed that she had feared for him, when he had been frightened into running away and leaving her. He opened his mouth to tell her the truth but Nigel cut him off.

"Daniel led me to find you, Syd." His gaze met with the younger man's, warning him that Sydney was not up to hearing of his betrayal, and Daniel nodded gratefully.

She squeezed her assistant's hand. "Thank you."

Daniel's stomach revolted. How could he have left her? How could he? He gently returned her squeeze. "I'm glad we found you, Professor." He would never call her Sydney, again. He had lost that right.

He released her hand and moved back to work on her leg. "I'll try to be gentle," he offered as he cleaned away the outer crust of blood below her knee with another water bottle and a small hand towel they had taken from the hotel. He accepted the bottle of peroxide that Nigel handed him. "This may hurt, Professor."

"She can take it," Nigel smirked at Sydney. "She's a tough bird."

Sydney had started to smile back just as Daniel poured the alcohol over her wounds. She hissed in pain, but only once.

"See," Nigel encouraged as he popped open a bottle of Tylenol. "Told you." He moved over and placed the pills one at a time in Sydney's mouth, then used the water to help her swallow.

Every time Sydney looked at him, she felt like crying again, but she forced the tears back. "Got anything…stronger?"

He smiled at her and in a rare moment of tenderness kissed her forehead. "Soon as we're out of here, I promise."

"I'll hold you to it," she replied. "I…I need to sit up."

Nigel helped her as Daniel continued to bandage her leg, careful of the bone that was still sticking out. Sydney immediately lost the little bit of liquid that had made it to her stomach. Nigel held her hair back away from her face and bit his lip, fearfully.

It was hard to tell because of the dimness in the cavern, but he was sure she had a concussion and she had already lost consciousness. They had to get her out of here and to a hospital.

"Sorry," she managed weakly and slumped back into Nigel's arms again, her eyes closed.

"Stay with me, Syd," he ordered sharply. "We have to get you out of here and I need you conscious."

Sydney's eyes reluctantly opened. "Nag….nag…" she began even as she felt herself starting to drift off again. She shook it away. Nigel was right; she couldn't go to sleep, despite the comfort it offered her. There was no pain in the darkness, no thirst, but if she closed her eyes again, it might be for the last time.

"Are you here, Syd?" Nigel demanded. "Are you with me?"

"Here," she moaned. "I'm here, Nige."

"Good. Can you stand?"

"Yes…" Sydney didn't know if she could or not, but she needed to help. "I will." She clung to Nigel as he helped her up and pulled her arm around his neck. She almost passed out again when she tried to stand on her right leg. "Oh...crap."

"Just lean on me, Syd." Nigel kept a firm arm around her waist and a death grip on her left hand to keep her arm around him. "Watch your head, it's low in here." They moved forward. "It isn't far, you can do it." He glanced at Daniel who was just rising from his knees, two more flares in his hands. "Grab the bag and go ahead of us."

Daniel nodded, quickly slung the sack over his shoulders and lit the two flares. He kept one trained ahead of him, and gave the other to Nigel.

They came to the tunnel and Nigel gripped Sydney tightly. "We have to crawl through."

Sydney stared at that horrible burrow and immediately felt claustrophobic. She remembered the spiders and how hard it had been to breathe. The tree roots that had practically skinned her alive and she knew, she knew she could not go through there again. For the first time, Sydney Fox was afraid to go forward.

"I can't," she whimpered and clung to Nigel. "Please….I almost died…"

"Syd, you will die if we don't go through."

"Nigel…I can't!"

Nigel squeezed her tighter. "Please, Syd." He thought of all the times she had forced him to face his fear, to go somewhere or do something he had been frightened to do. He never dreamed the tables would be turned. "We have to do this. It's the only way." He pulled away and cradled her face. "You're Sydney Fox. This is nothing for you. You can do this."

Her gaze locked with his, fearful and uncertain. She had to help, he couldn't get her out by himself. She had to help him. She slowly nodded.

"I'll be right behind you," he promised as he indicated that Daniel go first. "Daniel will be in front and the flares will keep most of them away. You'll be okay."

It felt so odd for Nigel to be reassuring her that Sydney almost laughed, but she knew if she started she would not be able to stop. Hysteria did that to a person. Gritting her teeth, she watched Daniel disappear through the hole and then carefully pulled herself inside.

Sydney swallowed the urge to scream as she squeezed into the tight, confined space once again, and was grateful at least this time for the little bit of light she had going through, instead of that terrifying darkness. It was getting harder to move, harder to breathe and she felt herself starting to freeze up.

"Grab my leg, Professor," Daniel offered, hearing Sydney's distress. "We're almost there.

Sydney reached forward and wrapped a hand around Daniel's ankle, finding reassurance as it moved steadily forward. She pulled herself after him with her free hand and tried not to think of the pain in her right leg, or the new scratches on her arms.

Finally she saw a pair or strong arms reaching through the hole for her and Daniel was pulling her out the other side. "Thank God!" she moaned as he carefully settled her on the ground before reaching to help Nigel out.

"Bloody hell!" Nigel shivered as he slapped at the spiders that had managed to cling to him for the ride along. He hoped none of them had bitten him. He'd tried to keep his panic quiet inside the tunnel because of Sydney, but now he was glad to be free of them.

Daniel quickly slapped a few bugs off himself, and then checked Sydney for any tag-alongs.

Sydney squinted at the rain coming through the open hole in the ceiling.

Daniel checked the rope and nodded to Nigel. "Still secure." He handed it to Nigel. "You go first." He would not be the first one to leave this time.

Nigel shook his head. "You have to go so you can pull Sydney up." It irked him to say it, because he still didn't trust Daniel not to turn tail and run again if there was anyone up there. However, the young man was by far stronger than he, so he had to use that.

Daniel could read the doubt in Nigel's eyes, and vowed to remove it. "Okay," he agreed and grabbed hold of the rope. "Get ready to tie her on." He started to climb the rope steadily and quickly, hand over hand, as if he had been doing it all his life.

"Nigel" Sydney said and indicated Daniel, just before he disappeared over the top. "Thank you."

Nigel realized then that Sydney was aware her assistant had run out on her and his amazement at her forgiveness was palpable "Don't even start with me." He helped her to her feet. "I may toss him back in once we're up."

Sydney grinned and kissed his cheek as he tied the rope securely around her. "No you won't."

Nigel flushed, pleased and then pretended to swat at her. "Stop your nonsense." Then, he tenderly cradled her face and touched his forehead to hers. "This is going to hurt." She nodded at him in forgiveness. He called up to Daniel. "She's ready, Daniel!"

He watched as Sydney slowly rose to the top and waited for the rope to be tossed back down. After a minute or so, when it still had not appeared he called again. "Hey! What's taking so long?" There was no response.

Nigel started to sweat as apprehension wormed its way through his body. If Daniel had run off again he would track the bugger down and carve a voodoo curse into his balls. "Daniel! Sydney!"

Finally the rope dropped. Nigel stared at it suspiciously as something crawled over his boot. He started and looked down, then looked up again. He scowled.

"She's lost consciousness again!" Daniel called down. "Hurry and get up here!"

Nigel scaled the rope faster than he had ever climbed anything in his life.


	8. Medicine & Malcontent

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Here's a nice long one for you. Thanks Hazygirl, Steamboat, Yvarlcris and Celeste for reviewing the last chapter! Hope you all like this one too! **___

**CHAPTER 8**

Nigel paced restlessly around the small, but slightly crowded hospital waiting room. It seemed half the country were injured and were at that hospital at that very moment. He worried about the quality of attention that Sydney was getting.

Every time he tried to ask a nurse or passing doctor something he was brushed off, and it seemed, to him anyway, that there were more doctors chatting with the nurses than there were looking at patients.

"This is crazy!" Daniel insisted as he glanced at his watch for the fifth time in the last two hours. "Why aren't they telling us anything?"

Nigel shook his head as a doctor finally approached. "Excuse me, we're waiting to hear about Sydney Fox?"

The physician scowled and looked down at his paperwork. "I believe she is being looked after by Dr. Jackman," he dismissed and indicated a woman who had been hacking non-stop since Daniel and Nigel had arrived. "Ms. Gonzalez?"

Daniel put his hand on the Doctor's arm as the old woman moved toward them. "When can we speak with this Jackman?"

"He's dealing with a lacerated arm right now."

"Then who's dealing with Professor Fox?"

The doctor gave them an impatient glare. "He'll get to her, but we have a lot of patients here that take priority."

"Priority over a freaking cold?" Daniel snapped indicating the elderly woman.

"We're doing the best we can," the doctor insisted and moved off with his patient.

Daniel slumped and ran his hand through his hair. "She's going to die. She's going to die because these people are incompetent!"

Nigel pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed a number.

"Who are you calling?" Daniel asked but the Englishman waved him away and moved further into the hall and away from the incessant moaning and groaning of the other patients waiting to be seen.

"Okay, thanks." Nigel put his phone back in his pocket and then nodded to Daniel. "Come on."

"Where are we going?"

"We're getting her out of here." The two men walked past the protesting nurses and into the examination area. "My God!" There were people lining the corridor on stretchers, moaning, coughing and a few he were sure were quiet from death alone.

He moved down the hall and spotted Sydney on a gurney. They had given her an IV of fluid and it appeared little else.

"Hey!" another doctor cried in Spanish as he walked out of a room and watched as Nigel pulled the sheet off of Sydney. "Qué estás hacienda?"

"Salvar su vida!" Nigel snapped in the physician's language. "Grab the saline bag," he ordered Daniel as he carefully lifted his unconscious friend off the gurney.

"You can't do that!" the doctor insisted in English, stopping in front of Nigel. "That woman is a patient and…"

Daniel stepped in front of Nigel and Sydney, protectively. "She'll die before anyone stops long enough to treat her!" he growled evenly. "Now move out of our way or you'll find yourself on that gurney dying to get some attention."

The doctor stepped back. "You can't do this! Seguridad!"

A tall, gray-haired physician stepped into the corridor as two security officers hurried toward the conflict. "What's going on here?" he demanded.

"Dr. Jackman, he's trying to take the patient!"

Jackman approached to Nigel, who was still holding Sydney in his arms. "What's the problem, mate?" His accent was distinctly Australian.

"My friend is dying while you people are dealing with the common cold, and I am not about to let that happen."

Jackman frowned as he glanced over Sydney's condition. "Why wasn't this woman brought to me immediately?" he demanded of the two nurses and the harassed looking doctor.

"We have given her fluid and set her leg; she is not in any danger..."

Nigel snapped. "She was nearly crushed by a ton of rocks and left for almost three days! How can you say she isn't in any danger?"

"If she was crushed in anyway and left for hours she could have internal bleeding or myoglobin toxicity." Dr. Jackman stated. "Did you check for any of that, Dr. Ortega?"

Ortega had the decency to flush.

Jackman shook his head in disgust and turned back to put his hand on Nigel's shoulder. "Let me take care of her, please?" Nigel was so scared that Sydney was about to die in her arms because of these incompetent people he was reluctant to let her go, but finally he did.

"Please, help her," he asked desperately as he carefully set Sydney back on the gurney.

"Take her to surgery one," Dr. Jackman said to the two nurses. "And have Dr. Remise finish up with my patient." He looked at Nigel and Daniel a nurse and orderly quickly starting moving Sydney down the hall. "We'll do our best. Why don't you follow me? You can watch from the observation room."

"Thank you," Nigel offered and quickly followed.

Over an hour later, Nigel watched Dr. Jackman perform surgery on Sydney and finally had to move away. He couldn't see anymore, not without allowing the fear to consume him.

"Looks like they're checking for internal bleeding," Daniel offered, riveted to the glass and the procedure below. "What was he talking about that multi-globin stuff?"

Nigel settled on a chair, leaned forward and shoved his hands into his hair. "It's call Crush Syndrome," he replied quietly and kicked himself for not considering that earlier as well. "When a person is being crushed, the area beneath whatever is crushing them is being damaged. Damaged tissue releases potassium, damaged muscle releases myoglobin. When the object is lifted from the area that is being crushed there is a possibility that these substances may be released to the rest of the body and can cause cardiac arrest or severe toxicity and death."

"So…poison? She could be poisoned from the chemicals in her own body?"

"Essentially, yes."

"But we don't know if any of that rock fell on her," Daniel reasoned. "I mean, if it had, she might have died when she escaped it."

"We don't know," Nigel agreed and ran his hands over his face and shook his head. "We don't know what happened and that makes it worse." She had been through so much, her body had been battered and broken, and it was a wonder she had survived at all.

Daniel turned back to the window. "She's come this far," he offered as his cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, looked at the number, and then put it back without answering it. "I mean…she was reasonably aware once you got her to wake up, and she's still breathing after sitting on a damn gurney for over two hours…so we have to assume she is going to make it." He turned back to Nigel. "Right?"

Nigel stood and again tried to watch the surgery, but he couldn't. It wasn't just the procedure, or the blood, it was the idea that he might be watching her die and a thick sheet of glass separated them.

"Um…" He ran his thumb nail over his left eyebrow. "I…I'm going to get a coffee. Do…um…do you want anything?"

Daniel shook his head, once more riveted on the scene below.

"Okay…I'll…um…I'll just be a few minutes."

He stepped out of the observation room and turned left. He found a washroom and headed inside, promptly losing all the contents of his stomach. After some left over retching, he weakly stood and moved to the sinks.

Splashing some cold water over his face and rinsing his mouth as best he could, he almost smiled at the state of his reflection in the mirror. His hair was filled with dust and mud, his shirt, and probably slacks were crushed and filthy, the shoulder torn at the crease. He'd certainly been in worse condition, mostly when he was working with Sydney, but it hadn't been for a long time.

He rinsed out what he could from his hair and washed his arms with soap up to his elbows and dabbed at the dirt on his shirt with a damp paper towel. He had to do something he had some control over at least.

Finally he stepped out and headed to the waiting room to get a coffee from the machine. He was startled by the sight if a familiar blond woman running towards him.

"Nigel!" She threw herself into his arms.

"Karen!" Nigel hugged her tight. "Oh God, It's so good to see you."

"I was so worried when I got Daniel's call." She pulled back only enough to see his face. "How is she?"

"She's still in with the doctors, in surgery."

"I'm sure she's going to be fine. She's been through worse."

"Karen, honey?"

Nigel turned to look at the young man who had entered the room. He was approximately five seven, light brown hair, cut short with long bangs, dark eyes and glasses. He was also distinctly British.

Karen pulled away from Nigel and reached for other Englishman. "Aaron, this is Nigel…" She turned back to Nigel and smiled. "I mean…Dr. Nigel Bailey."

Nigel extended his hand. "Nice to meet you."

"I've heard a lot of you from Karen and Sydney, Dr. Bailey," Aaron returned shaking Nigel's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you face to face."

"Nigel!"

Nigel turned around and smiled, almost tearing up at the site of the man walking towards him. "Derek!" They embraced and held each other tightly, as long lost friends did. "Thank God!"

"Derek!" Karen's eyebrows rose. "What are you doing here?"

"Nigel called me, said something about Sydney was hurt and wasn't getting any treatment here. I was actually in the area and rushed over."

"They finally took her in," Nigel admitted. "She's in surgery, but we haven't heard anything yet."

Aaron extended his hand. "Mr. Lloyd," he greeted. "A pleasure to meet you as well. Karen's told me all about you."

Derek's eyebrows rose and saw the obvious similarities between the two Englishmen. "I certainly hope not or I'll have to kill you." He shook Aaron's hand.

Aaron's smile faltered, trying to figure if the agent was joking or making a threat.

"You'll have to go through me first!" Karen warned with a small, but dangerous smile. "Aaron is my fiancé, Derek."

"Karen!" Nigel hugged her again. "That's wonderful. I'm so happy for you." He again reached for Aaron's hand. "Well done, mate. You couldn't find a better woman than Karen."

Karen flushed happily as Daniel approached.

"The surgery is done," he stated quietly. "Jackman said he'd come out in a few minutes."

"Thanks, Daniel." Nigel indicated Derek and quickly introduced them.

"Hey," Derek nodded looking hard at the younger man. "Have we met before?"

Daniel shook his head. "I don't think so."

"Your name sounds familiar."

"Common enough."

The subject was dropped as Dr. Jackman approached, the mood once again turned somber.

Nigel stepped forward. "How is Sydney?"

"The damage to her leg was extensive, but we managed to set it and hopefully it will mend properly. She had several lacerations on her legs and arms, several of them quite deep. We gave her fifty-three stitches in all, but she was severely dehydrated and had internal bleeding that took awhile to stop."

"What about the toxicity?" Nigel asked. "Was she suffering from Crush Syndrome?"

"Luckily not, she must have been hit, or possibly even covered by the rock slide, based on her injuries, but it appears she was not beneath them for any real length of time. She was able to free herself, which is probably what saved her life.

Nigel nodded. "We found her away from the debris."

"Is she going to be okay?" Karen asked, worried.

"Her condition is still critical. It's the loss of blood we have to worry about the most and the internal bleeding. We have given her several infusions, but if she starts to bleed again that may not be enough."

"Do you need us to give more blood, Doctor?" Daniel asked. "Will that help?"

"We always need blood donors, but Sydney is AB negative, and that is a very rare blood type. Are any of you AB negative?"

Everyone shook their head, except for Derek, who pulled out his cell phone. "I know someone who has it. I'll get them here straight away."

The doctor nodded. "That would help a lot."

"Can we see her?" Karen asked.

"Not just yet, she's in isolation. If her vitals remain steady we'll move her to an ICU unit and you can visit one at a time for a few minutes."

Nigel held out his hand. "Thank you, Doctor."


	9. Life Unexpected

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Spoiler for Run Sydney Run. Thanks for the reviews…please keep them coming!

**CHAPTER 9**

"The best you can hope for is death."

"The best we can hope for? Come on!"

"On my mark we make for the woods!"

"Stay close, Nigel,"

Nigel tried to cover his head and protect himself from the rapid gunfire, terrified out of his mind as he saw their escorts dropping like flies around him.

Then, Sydney reared back as a bullet pierced her body.

"NO!" he screamed, forgetting about himself and diving towards her. "Sydney!"

Sydney seemed to spin slightly in shock, and then slowly dropped to the ground.

Nigel reached for her hand as he landed hard on his stomach, just a few inches from her, and then he felt something hard crack against his head. He heard her call to him, and tried to move closer, but he was dazed from the blow.

"Nii...gel..."

His mind screamed in protest as he watched Sydney being picked up and taken away from him, just before he lost consciousness

Nigel awoke with a start, his heart pounding in his chest as the fear of that day threatened to engulf him.

"Easy, tiger," a familiar voice offered as a firm hand squeezed his shoulder. "Bad dream?"

Nigel looked up at Derek and tried to gather his wits. "Just an old one." He straightened from where he had slumped in the antique arm chair and ran a hand through his hair. "What...what time is it?"

"A little after three in the morning."

Nigel's gaze fell upon the figure in the hospital bed with several machines hooked up to her. Every beep of her heart monitor seemed to cause his own to skip a beat.

She had received a blood transfusion from a fellow that Derek had called, possibly another agent, but Jackman worried about Sydney's unwillingness to respond to stimuli after that. He advised that Sydney was still running a fever and she would need constant care. He admitted that they did not have the staff for round the clock care on anyone.

Derek promptly convinced the doctor to release Sydney to his care, and they were all flown to a villa somewhere in the countryside, however Derek had requested they be blindfolded as the location was a safe house and strictly need-to-know.

Once there, Sydney was set up in a beautiful, fully furnished bedroom, with a hospital bed and all required medical equipment. A man Derek referred to only as The Doctor came in on the hour to check on Sydney and there was a nurse currently sitting in the matching armchair on the opposite side of bed, quietly knitting. Nigel had taken up residence in the adjacent chair, unwilling to leave Sydney for even a moment.

"Has there been any change?"

"Not much."

"She's still running a fever?"

Derek nodded.

The nurse, an older woman name Gene looked at them. "Her body is trying to heal itself, a fever is her immune system's way of fighting it."

"People can die of a high fever." Nigel muttered and rose to take Sydney's hand. "God! She's burning up!"

Gene set her knitting aside and checked her vitals. "Her heart rate is only slightly elevated." She tapped a small device lying atop the bed stand. "Her temperature is actually coming down, see? The medication The Doctor prescribed is taking effect."

Nigel leaned over Sydney slightly and glanced at the reading on the scanner of 103 degrees. It had been 105 when they left the hospital.

Derek tapped Nigel on the shoulder again. "Why don't you go downstairs and get something to eat?" He indicated. "Gene will watch over Sydney."

Nigel shook his head and sat forward so he could take Sydney's hand. "I'm fine."

"Nigel, you've barely slept and haven't eaten since you got here."

"I'm fine!" Nigel snapped and then turned back to Sydney. "I'm not leaving her."

"No one's asking you to, my friend." Derek crossed his arms over his chest. "You're going to be no good to Sydney if you wither away. " He smirked and waved a hand in the air. "Besides, you're starting to get a little ripe."

Derek's attempt at humour failed to pull even the smallest smile from the Englishman, but Nigel did bow his head.

"What if she wakes up and I'm not here?"

"What if she wakes up and you smell like a barnyard? She'll want to go right back to la la land."

Nigel responded with a smirk. He hadn't had a shower since he left the hotel searching for Sydney, and that was several days ago. "I guess a shower wouldn't hurt."

"Only if you use hard water," Gene quipped lightly and gave him a warm, but firm look. "I'll watch your lady and come for you the minute there is any change."

Nigel rose and his stiff muscles immediately protested, proof that he had been sitting too long. "I'll be back in ten minutes, then."

"Take fifteen." Derek again waved his hand as if offended. "You need it."

Nigel did smile that time. He moved to the door and then paused and looked back at Sydney. "If she..."

"Go!"

Nigel nodded and stepped into the hall, then poked his head back in. "Thanks Derek."

Derek grinned as Nigel disappeared. "No problem, little buddy." He moved over and looked down at Sydney, gently pulling some hair away from her face. "You better get better soon, Syd." He cast a worried frown after Nigel. "Or we're gonna need another bed."

Nigel stepped into the shower and as the hot water hit him he almost signed. He had to admit, it felt good to get rid of some of the grime that had caked onto his skin the last few days. He scrubbed his hair clean and then his body, then indulged himself for a few minutes, braced his hands against the tiles beneath the shower head and let the water pour over him.

He was immediately drawn back to the night they were looking for Sydney, with the rain pouring down, soaking the ground and washing away any trail left behind leading to the underground cavern. He again felt the tight, panicked squeezing of his chest and quickly assured himself that he was not in that place any longer.

He shook away the sight of her, bleeding and broken. Tried to shrug off the moment her breath failed her. "She's fine!" he growled to himself. "She survived. She always survives!"

He thought of whoever those damn people were that had ambushed Sydney and Daniel at the ruins. He thought of Daniel fleeing for his own miserable life and leaving Sydney to die. He thought of himself and was so angry, no furious, that he had allowed his ego, his need to succeed outside of his association with Sydney Fox by taking a damned teaching job in England. He should have been there, should have been with Sydney.

He switched off the shower, stepped out and wrapped a hand towel around his fingers, and stepped into a complimentary terry-cloth robe. He opened the medicine cabinet and found antiseptic and bandages and repaired his hand as best he could.

He noticed that a clean set of clothes had been set out for him so he quickly dressed, then stepped out of the bathroom and headed back to Sydney's room.

"Nigel?"

He stopped and turned to see Karen, wearing a long green night gown and matching robe, coming up the stairs; she had dark circles under her eyes. She stepped up to him and just hugged him; no words were needed.

Finally Nigel pulled back. He needed to get back to Sydney, but Karen refused to completely break their embrace.

"Let me fix you something to eat?"

"No, I'm fine, really…"

"Nigel," she caught his face in her hands and stared into his eyes. "Please? I need to _do_ something."

"Karen, I…" As much as he adored his former co-worker he wasn't in the mood for her mother-hen act, and yet, he noticed desperation in her gaze unlike any he had seen before. He relented. "Okay, something quick."

"She gave him another quick, hard hug and then looped her arm through his and guided him towards the stairs. She glanced back at Derek, who was standing above them on the landing watching with approval. She met his gaze and lifted her head slightly in challenge, uncaring that he nodded back.

She wasn't just doing this for Derek or even for Nigel, she did need something to do. For someone who was use to multi-tasking and getting the job done, it was torture just sitting on her hands waiting for something to happen.

"Sydney's going to be fine, you know," she said as the entered the small kitchen and settled Nigel at the breakfast counter. "She's been through worse scrapes than this."

"When?" Nigel demanded, because he certainly had never seen her in this condition from any of the hunts they had been on.

The sharpness of his tone gave Karen pause, even as she pulled out a carton of eggs, butter and milk from the refrigerator. At least Derek kept a well stocked kitchen. "What I mean is, both of you have been in scrapes before and always come out the other side."

Nigel lowered his eyes, ashamed. "I'm sorry, Karen. I…I'm just so worried for Syd."

Karen set her ingredients on the counter, found a bowl in the cupboard and a selected a small frying pan from the rack over the kitchen island. "I know, me too." She cracked four eggs into the bowl, added milk and started to whisk them together with a fork. "We can't think negatively, Sydney wouldn't want us to give up."

"I'm not giving up! I'm just…" Scared out of his mind he almost said but quickly swallowed the words. There was no point admitting to that and upsetting Karen further. He tried to change the subject. "Um…so, how did you meet Aaron?"

"Syd was teaching a seminar in England and I went along," she explained as she melted butter in the frying pan and slowly added the egg mixture. "Sydney likes to visit this book store…"

"P&J Books," Nigel finished as he watched Karen add pieces of sliced cheese, sliced ham and some spices. "She always stops in there when we…" He broke off as he realized he was no longer active in that part of Sydney's life, although he had often gone back to the bookstore alone, whenever he got back to London.

Karen seemed to sense Nigel's sudden regret and picked up the conversation. "Yes she does, and the owner that Syd always dealt with had retired and his grandson took over."

"Aaron?"

She smiled as she flipped the omelet. "That's right. We hit it off right away and then we spoke on the phone and through emails for oh…almost a year."

"But if he lives in London and you're in America, doesn't that make things difficult?"

"Actually, no." She slid the omelet onto a plate, cut it in half and then retrieved a second plate for herself. "I'm usually so busy working with Syd, and he's into several different things as well so when we do get together it's…well it's wonderful!"

Nigel accepted a fork from her as she slid the second omelet onto her plate. "But, now you're getting married, right? Surely you're not going to live apart after that?"

"No, I'll be moving to London with Aaron."

Nigel cut into the omelet, unable to resist the decisions scent of it. Karen always was a fantastic cook. "Syd will be lost without you, Karen," he offered smiling. "I don't know how she'll find anyone to replace you."

"She won't have to. She'll be retiring from Trinity next year, so she and Alan can get started on a family."

Nigel paused with a forkful of omelet halfway to his mouth. "Pardon me?"

"Sydney's retiring next year. She and Alan got engaged the same time I did, of course they've know each other forever, although their wedding is before mine." Karen frowned. "Didn't she tell you? I thought you guys kept in touch?"

Nigel shook his head and felt as though the eggs he had eaten had hatched and giant mutant chickens were trying to climb their way back up his esophagus. "I…not as much…I've been…um…busy." Sydney…getting married? To Alan? Retiring from the university, he didn't think she would ever retire. Relic hunting and teaching was he life! "I…I didn't…um…I mean…that's…unexpected."

Karen regarded him quietly. "She's been really lonely since…well since you left," she admitted. "And I think…especially with you gone and now me getting married and moving to London…she wanted move on too."

He set his fork down and stared at his plate. Well, of course she was getting married, why wouldn't she? She was a beautiful, talent, intelligent woman and any man would be lucky to have her. There was absolutely no reason why she shouldn't retire and get married, and yet…somehow he felt cheated.

He liked Alan well enough, but he didn't like how the man always seemed to make Sydney try to choose between him and her passion for relic hunting. He never believed Sydney would give up that passion for any man, but then, she and Alan had strong emotional ties and a memorable past together. If anyone were to marry her, Alan is far better than any of the others she had been associated with.

"Nigel?"

Nigel looked up at Karen, as if suddenly remember she was there. "Sorry I…I'm not very hungry, Karen." He pushed the plate away and slid off the breakfast stool. "I…um…I'm going for a walk. I'll be back soon."

Karen watched him leave and tears filled her eyes. "Idiot," she cursed herself. "When are you going to learn to keep your mouth shut?"

She always suspected that Nigel was in love with Sydney, and that was why she and all the other women that chased him had had not chance of keeping him. The devastation in Nigel's eyes proved her theory. She didn't know if he felt betrayed because Sydney hadn't told him, or because Sydney was marrying someone else. "Oh, Nigel."


	10. To Do What's Best

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author.

_**CHAPTER TEN**_

Nigel walked through the small garden path that wound through the back area of the villa, and paused by a quaint little duck pond. He stared into the water at his own reflection and was concerned by the obvious distress on his features. No wonder Karen had called after him so alarmingly, and yet he couldn't have heeded her even if he had wanted to. He had been desperate to get away after hearing the news of Sydney and Alan's engagement.

Once over the shock, however, he realized that he had overreacted and tried to reason why. There was no possible cause for the news to shake him so badly. He certainly had not thought that Sydney would be a spinster the rest of her life. Or, maybe he had. While Sydney made no secret of her love of men, she always seemed unlucky with them, or at the very least not interested beyond a casual fling.

Sydney Fox was beautiful, intelligent and admirable, but she was by no means an easy woman to live with. She was incontestably stubborn and single minded when it came to getting what she wanted; it had to be her way and no one else's. She was also a strong, self-reliant woman, whom most men found too intimidating to speak to, or she was a challenge, a prize for a man equally as willful and independent to try and conquer.

Sydney always put her career first and that is a definite downfall for most relationships. She was horrible at keeping in touch even with her closest friends; he was proof of that. For the first year they talked daily, over text messaging or by email, and at least once a week over the phone. Then he had trouble reaching her, as she was often in the field, or his emails or texts would not be replied to for weeks at a time.

He had assumed, as was usually the case with Sydney, she was simply caught up in her work. She still remembered to call him on his birthday or send a Christmas card, and a catch up email came every couple of months, or a post card from her latest hunt destination. Then it dropped to a handful of calls or faxes picking his brain for recent finds or new discoveries, or to translate a language.

Nigel had been hurt at first, after all they had been together almost ten years, but then reminded himself, it was just Sydney's way. Out of sight, out of mind. She wasn't intending to be hurtful, but he as he recalled all Sydney's past acquaintances; it was the same story over and over. She was always delighted to see them and would do anything for them, but she had been consumed with her career and had simply fallen out of touch.

So while it did sting, he accepted it. He moved on with his life and backed off on his communications to her as well, not wanting to appear too needy. Although there had been nights when he had a particularly bad day at work and he had wanted nothing more than to call her, just to hear her voice and receive some support, but he had resisted. He would not harass her for comfort that used to be given automatically before. He had some pride after all.

He talked himself to death about it, assuring himself that it was simply his own doubts that was causing resentment and pain, is own insecurities. It wasn't Sydney's fault and she still called him on his birthday and Christmas, as he did the same for her.

Time moved on, life moved forward and there was simply no point grousing about it. He had come a long way from his previous points of view. He's even let go of all the old resentments towards Preston, well, most of them anyway. While he and his brother were not particularly fraternal, they had at last become chums, and that was something.

Now, the idea that Sydney had lost touch because she was in a relationship with Alan, well...that did hurt, alarmingly so and he couldn't for the life of him understand why. Did she think he would be upset that she had returned to her first love? Was he? Or was it more that she needed to cut ties with him? Perhaps Alan didn't want her to have any past men in her life. No he couldn't see that. Alan wasn't that kind of fellow and Sydney would never stand for being told who she was friends with.

It hurt that she had not told him the news himself. After all, she must be happy with Alan to accept his ring, so why wouldn't she want to convey that happiness to those she cared about and who cared about her? Sydney was his closest and dearest friend, his best chum, his partner and his mentor. He thought they were closer than any two people could be, and yet she lost contact and kept such news from him, even when they reconnected again. He hadn't noticed an engagement ring on her finger when they had met in Mexico, surely he would have noticed something like that? Perhaps Sydney didn't want him to know? Perhaps he had misjudged their relationship?

God knows he had received enough mixed signals from her over the years, and regardless of what was admitted to, there had been a certain sexual tension between them, yet it was always overlooked or ignored to pave the way for their true partnership. Which hurt more, in reality then? The fact that Sydney did not tell him she was getting married, or the fact that Sydney was marrying someone else at all?

He'd dated since moving back to England, but nothing serious. He just hadn't found the right woman yet, and while he was lonely at times, he realized he hadn't been looking particularly hard for her. Even when he did meet a nice woman, he automatically found himself comparing her to Sydney, but after all, it was reasonable to do that as he had spent a lot of time with Sydney and she was a difficult act to follow.

He moved away from the duck pond and back towards the house and spotted Daniel on his cell phone on the back patio. The younger man appeared agitated and that immediately put Nigel's radar on high alert.

He climbed the few short steps onto the patio as Daniel turned, spotted him and ended the call. "Everything okay?"

Daniel nodded, then shook his head. "My...girlfriend. She's freaking out because I can't tell her where I am or when I'll be back." He shrugged. "You know how it is."

Nigel didn't know. He'd never really had anyone worry about him other than Sydney, and she could hardly be classified as an obsessive girlfriend. Ninety percent of the time they were together when bad things happened, and if they weren't and she was the least bit worried about him, she simply tracked him down.

"How is Professor Fox? I tried to go visit her but that Nazi nurse chased me out of the room."

"She still has a fever and hasn't woken up."

"Can't they do something for her?"

Nigel shrugged. "I'm sure they are doing all they can. All we can do is wait."

"I'm no good at waiting."

Yes, your instinct is to run and hide. Nigel bit down on this thought before it could be verbalized. "Sydney will appreciate you being here."

Daniel nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. "So...who is this Lloyd character anyway? What's with all the security and blindfold and secret agent crap?"

Nigel smirked. "It's need to know." He slid open the patio door, stepped inside and immediately heard raised voices.

"He has a right to be here Derek!"

"This is a secret government location, Karen. It's bad enough I had to pull so many strings to take all of you here."

Karen glared at him, refusing to remind the agent of the fact that he had refused to allow Aaron to come, claiming he was non-essential personnel. Aaron had accepted the news and returned home, relying on Karen to give him updates over the phone. "He's worried sick..."

"So, call him and tell him not to worry." Derek paused and lifted his finger in warning. "But tell him it will be a waste of time trying to track your cell. We have a system that automatically reroutes any incoming and outgoing calls. He'll end up somewhere in Tanzania!"

Nigel paused outside the door way of the parlor. He hadn't expected to walk in to find Derek and Karen having an argument.

"She and Alan are close, Derek," Karen insisted. "She will never forgive you if you don't bring him here!"

"She hasn't asked for him." Derek moved to the small mini bar and poured himself a whiskey, straight. "And if I know Syd, and I do, she wouldn't want anyone else around to make a fuss over her."

"This isn't the same thing!" Karen growled at him, frustrated. "He and Sydney have a relationship and he has the right to be by her side when she's hurt!"

"Then why wasn't he by her side, Karen? Where was he when Sydney was dying in that pit that Nigel found her in? Nigel was there. Nigel risked his life to save her and got her medical attention and called me in." He swallowed the drink in one gulp and stepped up to her. "He trusted me to help care for her, to do what's best for her. In my book that gives _him_ the right to be here, and no one, no one else. You get me?"

While Nigel was touched by Derek's speech, his manners, his conscience wouldn't allow himself the status Derek meant for him. He stepped further into the room. "Send for Alan, Derek."

Both Karen and Derek looked at him, uneasily.

"Oh, Nigel," Karen sighed and lowered her eyes. She hadn't meant for him to hear any of this.

"She wants me to allow some boy-toy of Sydney's to come here," Derek scoffed. "Hell if I let all her boyfriends find this place I'd have to turn it into a friggin' community center!"

"Alan is Sydney's fiance," Nigel replied quietly. "He belongs here with Sydney, more than the rest of us."

Derek paused for a minute, digesting the news. "Bullshit!" He slammed his glass down and moved towards, Nigel. "No one has more right to be here than the two of us, my friend. We've been with Sydney for better and worse."

"More worse on your part," Nigel reminded lightly and then tapped Derek's shoulder in appreciation. "We have to do what is best for Sydney. Maybe she'll recover quicker if she knows he's here."

"If she recovers it will because you saved her life!"

"Send for him, please?"

Derek growled in frustration. "Fine!" He took a deep breath and returned to his usual, cocky calm. "I'll take care of it."

"Today," Nigel insisted and Derek nodded. "Good. Good." He turned away. "I'm going to go check on her."

Karen moved towards him. "Nigel…" she began and reached for him. "I'm so sorry…"

Nigel caught both her her outstretched arms before they could envelop him. "I'm fine, Karen." He pulled in to kiss her cheek. "It was just a shock. We'd had dinner when she first arrived in Mexico and I would have thought…" He shook his head. He would not allow his hurt or resentment of her not telling him cloud his judgement. "We have to do what is best for Sydney." He squeezed her hands assuredly, then released her and stepped back. "I'm fine. Really."

Karen watched him leave and felt her heart break. He wasn't fine, he wasn't fine at all and they both knew it. She had divided loyalties and it was killing her to have to do this, but Sydney was her friend too and she would want Alan here.

She turned back to Derek and ignored his hard, scrutinizing look. "What?"

"I didn't say anything." In truth, Derek had never come so close to hitting a woman.

He had only two people that he could trust completely, neither of them trusted him in the same way, at least not that they would admit to, but both of them been through more than enough recently, and having some thoughtless bimbo cause a person he had come to think of as his closest, and perhaps only friend, more pain…Well, it was a good thing that could control his emotions or Karen Petrusky might have found herself hogtied and dumped somewhere in Antarctica.

"I can give you Alan address..." she began.

"I don't need it."

"But how will you...?" Derek stared at her mockingly and she remembered who she was talking too. He probably had a file on everyone who ever spoke to Sydney Fox. "Fine, but make sure Alan arrives uninjured."

Derek shrugged and poured himself another drink. "Sorry, insurance on bulk packages, is extra."

Karen barely contained her scream, turned on her heal and stormed out.


	11. What Dreams May Come

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Thanks for the reviews, so glad you are enjoying it! So…votes on ending it here? :

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

Sydney's eyes flickered open and she stared up at the beautiful blue sky above her; free of clouds or even birds. It was quiet here, peaceful and the gentle sound of the waves cresting on the beach was already lulling her back to sleep.

She started to turn on her side as her back was starting to get sore, and as she did she felt the gentle crush of sand against her cheek. She rose on her elbow, startled. Why was she laying on the beach without even a towel?

She scowled and sat, glancing around at the deserted beach. Was she was the only one here? Her own private island? That almost made her smile, except for the fact when she looked behind her, all she saw were palm trees. No buildings, shacks, cottages, not even a boat anywhere to be seen.

She scrambled to her feet, almost tripping on the long, greek-style gown she wore. She brushed at some of the sand crushed clinging to the silk, then moved towards the water. Shading her eyes she tried to see a boat, a figure or even another island on the horizon, but there was only clear, blue sea as far as her eyes could see.

"Where the hell am I?" she said aloud as she started down the beach. She couldn't be here alone. "Hello? Is anyone here?" She had no purse, no satchel, not even a cell phone. This was a little too much seclusion. "Hello? Anybody?"

She tried to recall where she had been and couldn't. She continued to walk but there was just more beach and more trees, no sign of life. Not even an animal!

She dropped down on the sand, confused. Had someone kidnapped her and dropped her on a desert island? She immediately thought of Derek Lloyd. She hopped up again. "If you're out there Lloyd I'm gonna strangle you!"

There was no response. An uneasiness crept over her and she moved towards the water. There had to be fish, right? She waded about waist deep and then dove in. The water was pure, clear, and completely free from any aquatic life. There wasn't even seaweed or coral.

She surfaced and waded back to the beach. She looked again up at the sky, clear, blue and devoid of life. The ocean was devoid of life. The trees, the beach…everything was gone. Everything but her.

She again dropped down on the sand and flicked her dripping hair out of her eyes. She was alone. Totally and completely alone. She shivered but not from her wet clothes. Where the hell was she? What had happened to everyone? What happened to the birds, the animals, the fish?

She spotted a glow coming from the trees and hurried towards it. She wrinkled her nose at the sudden smell of rotting corn. No, it couldn't be! That couldn't be here! But the glow was getting stronger and stronger and she ran away from the trees and further down the beach.

She dropped her head on her pulled up knees and started to rock, trying to comfort herself. Was she dead? Was this what death was? A reminder of her past offences? An endless ocean and sand and no one to share it with? No one to talk to?

_**If you could be on a desert island and have only one person for company, who would it be?**_

The voice surrounded her, and yet there was no one to have spoken it; no one but her. Her first thought suddenly appeared as a figure far down the beach.

"Sydney!"

"Nigel!" She leapt up and ran towards him, delighted when they met in the middle and he picked her up in his arms and swung her around. "Thank God!"

"What are you doing here?" he asked her, excited. "I thought I was alone here."

"Likewise!" she countered smiling. "I thought I was alone too! I wished for you and suddenly you were here!" She backed up suddenly to a previous thought. If she was dead, did that mean Nigel was too? "Nigel, are we dead?"

"God, I hope not! I just put a down payment on a loft apartment!"

She grinned, grasped his hand and turned back to where she had come from. "We need to find a way off this island. How are you at cutting down trees?"

"What's your rush?"

Sydney spun around and glared at Derek Lloyd. She snatched her hand away. "Where did you come from? Where's Nigel?"

"That's need to know," Derek assured her grinning and trying to catch her hand again. "Besides, why waste this beautiful paradise when we could be making some real memories?"

She grabbed him by the shirt front. "What did you do to Nigel?"

"I didn't touch him."

"I swear to God, Derek, if you don't…" Sydney's words were cut off by the thunderous sound of cannon fire. She released Derek, spun back towards the ocean and was aghast to see an actual 16th century pirate ship cresting the waves. "What the hell?"

"Sydney! We have to go, now!"

Sydney turned back as her hand was caught and her eyes widened. "Dallas?" What the hell was happening? Where did Nigel and Derek go? Was this a dream? "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for treasure of course." Dallas pulled her away from the beach and into the trees. "Same as those pirates. Come on, we have to hurry!"

Sydney had no choice but to follow him through the trees and further inland. "What is going on? How did you get here? Do you have a boat?"

"Yes. On the other side of the island."

"I walked around the entire island and I didn't see it!"

He glanced back at her and grinned, tipping his cowboy hat. "You don't expect me to leave it out in the open do you?"

Sydney had to admit, it would have been foolish to do so. She paused to look back and noticed that the pirates had made it ashore. "Are they real pirates?" she demanded catching up with Dallas.

"You can wait for them and ask if you like." He turned suddenly and grabbed her arm. "Down!"

A pistol shot ripped off a piece of palm tree just as they both dove for the ground.  
"I hate guns!" she growled as they scrambled to her feet. "Why do there always have to be guns?"

Dallas had gotten further ahead of her than she expected and she increased her speed to keep up, not easy since they were now in a forest of trees and she was in her bare feet.

"Dallas! Wait up, I…!" Her words were cut short as the ground beneath her gave way and she dropped into deep, dark hole.

She hit the ground below hard and felt her leg snap. "Arrrggg!" she growled and glared up at the hole above as a huge shadow blocked out the sun. "Kafka!"

He waved his hooked hand at her. "Did Alice fall down the rabbit hole?"

"Get me out of here!"

He shook his head. "No, that won't do at all." His face turned ugly. "I told you I'd pay you back for my hand, Sydney." He shook the hook at her then stepped back. "Sweet dreams, Alice."

Sydney watched aghast as mountains of dirt started to pile into the hole. "NO! Kafka! We…we can talk about this!" She tried to move out of the way, tried to keep the dirt out of her face as it fell. "Nigel! Dallas!" She glared up at Kafka. "You lousy sonofabitch!"

She could hear her laughter as the dirt fell faster and faster. She looked around, frantically and saw a dim glow just off to the right. She tried to rise, but her leg refused to support her, so she crawled over to the opening in the dirt wall and slid through.

She fell out the other side and hit her head. Shaking it, she forced herself to remain conscious and looked around her. There were a hoard of artifacts surrounding her, all of them priceless. What the hell?

She heard a familiar laugh and looked behind her. "DaViega!"

Her nemesis was seated on an enormous throne, half of his face hidden by a mask that sheltered the side that had been burned from the explosions when they had met before. He was holding a jeweled scepter. "Welcome, Professor. So glad you could make it."

She tried to rise, gritted her teeth and managed to get halfway before her leg gave out again and dropped her to the ground. "You bastard! I'll kill you!"

He shook his finger at her. "Now now, we mustn't get ahead of ourselves." He indicated to his right. "At least not before dinner."

Sydney's head swung in the direction he indicated and her eyes widened in dismay. Nigel was chained to the wall next to a large opening, as was Derek and Dallas. "What? How did…Let them go, DaViega!"

She felt a terrible vibration in the floor and watched horrified as an long, thin, enormous hairy leg poked out from the opening, then another, and then six more. She slid back in fear. A giant tarantula! She looked to her friends, then back at the beast. "No…" She looked at DiViega who smiled menacingly.

"Tick Tock my dear…then chop chop."

"NO!" she screamed as Nigel awoke just in time to see the monster standing before him. He screamed as the spider's pinchers opened wide and closed over his head.

* * *

Nigel stepped into Sydney's room and upon hearing the distressed voice of his friend, quickly moved to her side. "What's happened?" he demanded. "What's wrong?"

"Her fever spiked, she's delirious," Gene stated as she wiped Sydney's face and brow and kept an eye on her heart rate monitor. "It means she's fighting off any infections."

"No one…alone…smells like corn…no… not here!"

Nigel leaned over her. "What is it, Syd…what do you see?"

"Can't be dead...can't...never told him...no...no...NIGEL!"

"I'm here, Sydney." He caressed her forehead. "I'm right here, it's okay."

"Watch out!" Sydney whimpered, her head twisting back and forth in delirium. "Kafka...can't let... ! No...run...hurts...no…Dear God! Don't…can't breathe..." Nigel took her hand, God she was so hot.

"It's okay, Syd. You're safe now."

"Dallas...Nigel…help me… HIDE!…Kafka..."

"How long has she been like this?" Nigel demanded.

"Not quite 30 minutes. She'll settle down."

"Can't you give her anything?"

"Not with this high a fever, she could slip into a coma."

Oh God! Nigel watched the torment flicker across Sydney's features and felt his gut twist.

"Here," Gene held the wet cloth toward him. "Use the ice water and keep her cool, I'm going for the doctor."

Nigel quickly moved to the other side of Sydney, dipped the cloth in the bowl and bathed the sweat from Sydney's face as she continued to squirm and mutter, caught in some awful nightmare. He dipped the cloth again and ran it over her bare arms.

"Oh, Syd, I wish I knew what else to do." He dipped the cloth and after some hesitation gently bathed her neck and the area just above her chest, where the collar of the hospital gown dipped. "You have to get better, you have to."

He didn't know what else to do so he started again with her face. "I've been such an idiot to let myself get so busy that I didn't write back as often as I should have. I hope you can forgive me," He lifted her right arm, careful of her injuries, and dabbed the skin around them. "I promise I won't let that happen again."

"Trapped...have to get to...DaViega!" Sydney instantly became more agitated and started thrashing. "No...NIGEL! I'll kill you! Kill you DaViega!"

Nigel didn't know if he should try and hold her down or if that would make things worse. Instead he put his hand to her cheek. "He's gone, Syd. He's dead, he can't hurt you anymore. Please, please come back to me."

"Nigel...Help me...so dark...hurts..."

"I'm here, Syd. Follow my voice, luv." He took her hand and squeezed it. "I'm right here. I've got you."

Sydney seemed to stiffen almost on the verge of convulsing, just as the Doctor and nurse hurried in. Then she went completely still.

"Sydney!"

Sydney slowly opened her eyes, looked up at Nigel and squeezed his hand, then drifted off again.

The Doctor quickly gauged her temperature, checked her heart rate and breathing, and then shined a pen in her eyes. "Her fever's dropping. She's just asleep."

"Thank God!" Nigel grasped for the chair behind him and slumped into it.


	12. A New Arrival

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only.**_

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

"Karen!" Alan stepped away from the helicopter, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder, and opened his arms as Karen hurried towards him. He gave her a quick hug, then pulled back. "How is she?"

"She's recovering," Karen yelled over the noise of the copter as she pulled Alan towards the house. "The Doctor has her on some strong pain medication so she's been in and out of it."

"Can I see her?"

"No."

Karen and Alan pulled up short as they entered the house and met up with a scowling Derek Lloyd.

"Derek! He has a right…"

"He has the right to do what I tell him." Derek replied coldly. "My house, my rules."

"I just want to see her for a minute," Alan requested. "Then I'll stay out of your hair. I just need to know she's okay…"

"I'm sure Karen's filled you in on Sydney's condition."

"Yes. But I…I need to see for my own eyes."

"Tough, you'll just have to take our word for it."

Alan dropped his bag, angrily. "Now look…"

Derek stepped up even closer, invading Alan's space and immediately deflating any further conflict. "There is no look, only listen. I agreed to let you come here but don't push your luck. You can see Sydney when The Doctor clears it and not before." He pulled aside his jacket and indicated his weapon. "You give me any grief, you even breathe in a way that annoys me and I'll make sure your body is never found. Do we understand each other?"

Karen paled and looked back and forth between the two men. Alan looked like he wanted to push the matter but she put her hand on his forearm. "Don't," she warned. "You have no idea what he's capable of. You're here now, let's just wait and see what The Doctor says." She pulled Alan around Derek and continued down the hall. Then, just for Derek's benefit, knowing it would be a slap in his face, she added. "Sydney never did trust him."

Derek stared after them until they disappeared up the stairs. "You're lucky you're cute," he muttered as his cell phone rang. He reached for the pouch on his belt, pulled out the phone and flipped it open.

Nigel was just coming out of his room when Karen and Alan made it to the first landing.

"Nigel!" Alan moved forward and extended his hand. "It's good to see you again!"

Nigel allowed the taller man to pull him in for a quick embrace and a slap on the back. "Hi, Alan."

"How are you?" Alan grimaced and stepped back. "Just like old times, huh?"

"Too much so," Nigel agreed and allowed himself a small smile. He really did like Alan. "Sydney will be glad you're here."

"If she ever knows. The asshole with the gun won't let me see her."

Nigel almost smiled again at Derek's protectiveness and for a split second he considered abiding it and keeping Sydney all to himself. "Nonsense, I'll take you to her." His gaze lifted over Alan's shoulder to a miserable looking Karen. He met he gaze, let her know that he was okay, that he wasn't angry with her. "I understand congratulations are in order?"

Alan grinned as he and Karen followed Nigel down the hall. "Yeah, finally talked her into it. She was a pretty hard sell. " He squeezed Nigel's shoulder as they walked. "You'll come to the wedding, of course?"

They stopped outside the room where Sydney was being cared for. "I'm sure you'll make Syd very happy," he replied, bypassing the invitation and opening the door.

Gene looked up and frowned. "Now, Nigel, you know only you and…"

Nigel waved her protests away as he stepped into the room. "Alan is Sydney's fiancé, Gene."

The nurse's face softened. "Oh, I see." She returned to her knitting as Alan moved to Sydney's side.

'My God!" he croaked, dropping to his knees by the bed in despair. "She…she looks so…" He looked up at Nigel, his eyes shining with unshed tears. "What happened?"

"It doesn't matter," Nigel replied quietly. "She survived and she's getting better."

Alan stared down at Sydney, and then he rose, reluctantly and moved to Nigel again. "I…I can't begin to…" He embraced Nigel suddenly. "Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you for bringing her back to me."

Nigel wanted to scream that he hadn't done it for Alan, but it would be pointless. He could feel Alan trembling in his arms; it made him sad and uneasy. This man truly loved Sydney; that much was evident.

"She would do the same for either of us," he stated and pulled back. "Sit with her as long as you like. I've been reading to her." He indicated the novel on the bedside table. "She has moments of lucidity so I thing she can hear us."

Alan nodded, squeezed Nigel's shoulders again then returned to sit beside Sydney. Nigel watched them for a moment longer, then moved towards the door and towards Karen.

"Nigel," she began once he closed the door. "I…"

Nigel shook his head and walked away from her. He wasn't up to her worrying or her regrets. He wasn't up to small talk with Alan or any talk at all.

He headed downstairs and into the sitting room, almost immediately spotting Derek at the bar, pouring two glasses of scotch. Derek met Nigel's gaze and silently pushed one of the glasses towards him. After only a moment's hesitation, Nigel walked over and accepted the glass. He downed it in one gulp, then immediately started coughing.

Derek smirked, and filled up Nigel's glass again. "It's 40-year old scotch," he warned as he picked up his glass and the bottle. "Show some respect."

Nigel took a small sip, it still burned but not as much, and it did have a pleasing taste. "I have very little respect left at the moment."

Derek nodded and indicated that Nigel follow him towards the private terrace. "I figured."

Nigel took another sip of his drink and stepped out into the cool evening air. The sun was just beginning to set and the sky was afire with colour. He settled in a comfortable arm chair adjacent to the one Derek dropped into. "Nice night."

"So far." Derek agreed as he opened a polished wooden box that sat on the small table between them and removed a cigar. He offered one to Nigel, who declined, then he lit one for himself. "They have the best sunsets here, of all the places I've been."

"And where is here, exactly?" Nigel asked.

Derek smirked and inhaled slowly. "Now, now."

"Now, now yourself." Nigel already knew where they were, or at least suspected the country and general area. He'd had the chance to observe the stars the evening before, and based on the weather patterns and where the sun set and rose, it wasn't difficult. He wouldn't ruin Derek's game though.

"He in with her?"

"Yes."

"I told him he couldn't see her."

"I know."

"You let him anyway?"

"I did."

Derek grinned and took a sip of his scotch. "I could arrange for him to disappear?"

"You probably could."

"If you asked me I would."

Nigel understood Derek's offer and was oddly touched by it, however he wisely remained silent. Instead, he reached for a cigar.

Derek grinned at his omission, snipped the tip of Nigel's cigar and then lit it for him. "Try not to throw up."

Nigel inhaled carefully at first, liked the sensation and tried again. He sighed and sat back in the chair, crossed his ankle over his knee and reached for his drink, he blew a smoke ring.

"Look at you!"

Nigel grinned and it felt good. He was beginning to wonder if he would ever feel like smiling again. "I used one of these once to show laser sensors so Syd could get to a relic."

"Smart." Derek puffed on his cigar and stared out at the sky. "You ever see a sky like that?"

Nigel considered the question. "Once," he admitted. "Sydney and I were in Alaska checking something out for a friend. The sunrise was pretty amazing."

"What were you checking out?"

Nigel glanced at him. "Sorry, need to know."

Derek chuckled. "Touché."

They sat there silently for a long time, watching the sun set and the sky darken, then fill with stars.

"She will be okay, won't she. Derek?"

"Doc seems to think so. She'll come around soon. He just wants to keep her medicated until the majority of her wounds are mostly healed."

Nigel nodded. He'd finished his cigar and was on his third glass of scotch. "Sydney can handle the pain."

"Yeah, but she doesn't have to."

"She doesn't like drugs."

Derek snorted. "She doesn't like a lot of things," he retorted and refilled both their glasses.

"I can't hold my liquor you know," Nigel warned, even as he continued to sip his drink. He had that lose, tingly feeling he usually got from too many beers.

"S'kay, I'll catch you if you start to over-flow."

Nigel giggled and then promptly slapped his hand over his mouth. "See what you've done?"

Derek regarded the Englishman quietly. He knew exactly what he had done and was doing, giving Nigel a night off from the tragedy, worry and emotional upheaval he had been thrown into over the last few days. "You are my only friend, did you know that?"

Nigel looked at him startled, and then his expression softened in pleasure. "Really? I like you a lot too, Derek." He scowled suddenly. "But I still don't trust you."

Derek laughed. "Why?"

"Sydney won't let me!" Nigel laughed at his own remark.

Derek reached over and patted Nigel's hand. ""That's okay, we'll keep it between us."


	13. Revelations

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Thanks for the reviews, keep em coming..oh and Celeste…READ IT ANYWAY! LOL!

_**CHAPTER THIRTEEN**_

Sydney Fox looked stunning in a long white, strapless gown, as she walked slowly down the isle toward her groom. The church was packed for her big day, not a seat was vacant. Sydney had so many friends, so many people loved her.

Nigel watched her smile at him as she passed and he felt a horrible hitch in his chest. Did she know? Did she know how many people loved her, truly loved her?

She turned away and smiled at Alan, she was almost there, almost at the altar.

"Sydney!" Nigel called and stood up, frantic that she was about to make a horrible mistake. "Sydney, wait!"

As always, she listened to him, and regardless of everything else that was going on, she paused and turned towards him, concerned. "Yes, Nigel?"

The words caught in his throat. What had he been about to say? Why had he stopped her? He was ruining her beautiful day! "You…I…Alan…"

She smiled at him, knowingly. "Oh, Nigel." She turned back and took one step when the entire world around them shook. She looked up just as the church collapsed and a mountain of rocks dropped upon her.

"NO! Sydney!" Nigel lunged for her, caught her hand, just before the rest of her was buried by the rubble.

"Sydney!" Alan cried as he tried to reach his bride. "Sydney!" He caught sight of Nigel around the rocks. "You did this! You killed her!"

Nigel bolted up in bed, sweat pouring down his face, a scream stuck in his throat from the nightmare. Almost immediately the result of last night's drinking hit him. His stomach lurched and he hurried out the door and two steps down the hall to the washroom to empty the contents of his stomach.

"Oh God," he muttered once he was done and weakly rose to splash water on his face and rinse out his mouth. "Never again," he promised his reflection.

He stumbled back into his bedroom, closed the door and leaned on it, briefly. The sun was already high in the sky through the window. He wondered how long he had been asleep. He grabbed his watch and checked the time, almost noon!

He quickly dressed and tried to ignore the pounding in his head, stepped out and immediately headed down the hall to Sydney's room. Irene, a young Jamaican woman sat with her this time of day. Instead of knitting, she was reading.

"How is she?" he asked as he closed the door behind him and moved to Sydney's beside.

"Sleeping soundly, now. Had a bit of discomfort earlier, no fever, just dreams I expect." She eyed him, curious. "Looks like you didn't sleep well either?"

Nigel shrugged and settled in the chair by Sydney's bed. "Morning, Syd," he greeted as he took one of her hands between both of his. "Well, afternoon actually. I can't believe I slept that long, you'd certainly be giving me the gears for it."

Irene listened for a moment, smiling. "I think she missed you. She seems more settled when you're here."

Nigel felt a flush of pleasure but quickly shrugged it off. "You'd better wake up soon, Syd. Can't laze about forever, you know? Things to do, relics to find."

"She won't be finding any more relics."

Nigel turned to see Alan in the doorway. "Sorry?"

"She's retiring. Didn't she tell you?"

"Well…yes." Nigel released Sydney's hand and sat back. "I heard that but I thought it wouldn't be until next year."

Alan shook his head and stood at the end of Sydney's bed, gazing over her. "No, I intend to make her see sense as soon as she wakes up. She can't keep doing this kind of thing, putting her life at risk."

Nigel bristled but tried to force it back. "Relic hunting is Sydney's life, or at least a huge part of it."

"She won't have time for it when we're married. She'll be raising our children."

Nigel winced inwardly and turned his attention back to Sydney. "Alan, if you know her half as well as you should, you know that she will always make her own decisions. She doesn't like to be pressured."

"That was the old Sydney. The new Sydney is much more reasonable." Alan moved up to caress Sydney's face. "She's mellowed quite a bit the last few years. Otherwise she would never have taken my proposal seriously."

He looked at Nigel, frowning. "Surely you don't think she should continue relic hunting after this last time? It's far too dangerous."

Nigel shrugged. "It's always been dangerous, Alan, and it isn't up to me or you to decide. It's up to Sydney."

"You don't want her to get hurt again do you?"

"Of course not! But I can't just tell Sydney she can't do something she loves so much."

"Nigel, please. I'm counting on you to support me on this. Syd listens to you. You could make her see…"

Nigel rose. "No. No, Alan, of course no." Sydney was his friend, he would never pressure her like that.

"Why not? She could have been killed, Nigel!"

"I know!" Nigel snapped and tried to reign in his temper. "You think I don't know that? I was the one that found her, Alan. I was the one that carried her into that hospital, broken and bleeding, so don't tell me that she could have died, I was there!"

Alan felt that there was a moment of accusation in the Englishman's tone, but he let it slide. "I know you were, Nigel. And I am forever grateful you were." He scowled slightly as he glanced down at Sydney. "Although, I still don't understand how it was you that found her. I didn't even think you guys were speaking much lately, not since you left her to go to England."

Nigel did hear the accusation in Alan's tone and he didn't like it. "Syd and I discussed it. It was time for a change, for both of us. She understood."

"Oh, I'm sure she did. I'm sure she did." Alan paused. "Still, I've never seen her close to anyone as she was with you, so I thought it was odd when you guys broke up."

"We didn't…" Nigel glared at him, frustrated. "We didn't break up, I had an opportunity and she insisted I take advantage of it. We didn't stop…being friends."

Alan shrugged. "Not what I saw, Nigel. When Sydney and I hooked up again I couldn't even mention your name without her looking wounded." He turned to Nigel again. "What did you do to her anyway? What did you do to hurt her so much?"

"That's enough!" Irene insisted, firmly. "You want to have a jaw at each other do it outside, I am not gonna stand for it around my patient!"

Nigel and Alan stared at each other for a long moment, finally Alan spoke.

"Sorry, I…I guess I'm just worried."

Nigel felt the apology stick in his throat. Had he hurt Sydney by leaving? They had talked it over and she had insisted that he go. Was that the real reason she didn't contact him as much anymore? Was she upset with him?

"I…" He didn't know what to say, so he figured it was better to say nothing. What did it matter, really? Alan had won, hadn't he? He turned around and left the room.

He headed downstairs; he needed something for his headache before it exploded. He found Karen in the kitchen.

"Well, morning, lazybones!" she greeted smiling as she poured herself a glass of milk. 'Want me to make you something to eat?"

"No." He walked over and caught her hand. "Karen, I want you to be honest with me. How was Sydney after I left?"

Something flickered in Karen's eyes and then disappeared. "She was fine, I mean she obviously missed you, but…y'know. Business was normal."

"Karen, the truth, you owe me that."

Karen flushed and put the milk on the counter, lowering her eyes. "Nigel, please I…"

Nigel flushed with shame. "She didn't want me to leave, did she? I hurt her, didn't I?"

Karen pulled her hand away, agitated. "Look, this isn't fair! I already told you more than I should have and…" She was startled when he caught her arms and held her still. "Nigel, please!"

"The truth, Karen."

Karen lowered her eyes for a long moment and then finally met his gaze. "She was devastated, Nige. She put up a brave front, but I knew, we all kind of knew that she wasn't the same Sydney after." Karen pulled away and rubbed at her arms as she moved over to stare out the terrace doors. "She wanted you to take that position, she knew it was an incredible opportunity but she…well she wasn't as ready to let you go as she thought I guess."

Nigel slowly dropped into a chair by the dinette. "Oh God."

Karen immediately turned back and moved to sit next to him. "It isn't your fault! These things happen, Nigel. She didn't want to hold you back, she was afraid you'd resent her for it later and…and she thought she could handle it."

"Why didn't she tell me? Why not just ask me to come back for God's sake?"

Karen shook her head. "Sydney has some pride, you know. She thought she was doing what was best for you." She sighed. "I don't think she expected to miss you so much. She relied on you, Nigel. I mean, you guys were joined at the hip for so long and…" She shook her head. "She made me promise to never tell you how miserable she was."

"And Daniel?"

"Daniel was her first assistant since you. She'd refused to hire anyone else, and she only took him on because he practically hounded her for the position. Wore her down until she hired him."

"And then ran like a scared rabbit the first time something bad happened." Nigel leaned forward on the table and put his head down on his arms. "Why didn't I see it? She was pulling away from me a little at a time and she…I thought she was just getting caught up in her work. I never thought she was distancing herself."

Karen rubbed a hand across his shoulders in comfort. "She didn't want you to feel bad, Nigel."

He lifted his head and sat back. "And Alan?" How long before he swooped in and took advantage of her vulnerability and loneliness?

"When Alan started coming around we started to see a bit of the old Sydney again, but she was different somehow, more…"

"Mellow?"

Karen nodded. "And compliant. She was passing up relic hunts to spend time with Alan, and then, when I got engaged she seemed to practically leap into his arms."

Nigel sighed heavily. "The moment she wakes up I shall put her across my knee and give her a good spanking!"

Karen almost smiled. "She might like that."

He smirked and ran his fingers through his hair. "Thank you, Karen." He squeezed her hand. "I didn't mean to put you in the middle, but I'm very glad you told me. Now I…I think I understand some things better."

Karen linked her fingers with his. "I hope so."

"And what about this fellow you're going to marry? Is he good enough for you?"

"Yes, he's wonderful."

"He'd better be, and he had better treat you like a queen or he will have to answer to me."

Karen laughed and threw her arms around his neck. "Oh, Nigel."

"No sex in my kitchen!"

Both turned to see Derek walking in and quickly sprang apart.

"Unless I'm involved in it."

Karen rose and glared at him. "You're sick!" She picked up her glass of milk and walked out. "Disgusting pig!

Derek shrugged as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "And yet you still drink my milk." He took a sip and turned to Nigel, his expression grim. "How's your head?"

"I'll survive. What's wrong?"

"We need to talk."

"I'm not going to like this, am I?"

"No."


	14. Treachery  & Turmoil

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please review. Made longer at special request **_

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

Nigel sat in the kitchen for a long time, digesting what Derek had told him. For security measures, Derek had tracked all incoming and outgoing calls, but Daniel had not been aware of it. Derek had advised Nigel that the calls were all from the same number and he'd run them through the CIA database and comes up with a number for a known member of the Gural Nataz.

At first, Nigel refused to believe it, he had seen how upset Daniel had been when they found Sydney. How guilty he seemed to feel even now. Guilty? Was he guilty for running out on Sydney or for leading her into a trap?

Nigel rose. He needed to move, to think. He didn't think Derek would lie to him, not about his, but at he same time, he honestly didn't trust Derek completely; even now. Many of Derek's tales were self-serving and this one could be too.

He passed by the living room and noticed Daniel standing and staring out the window. Nigel could hear the light sound of a cell phone vibrating in the TA's jean pocket.

"Aren't you going to answer that?" Nigel demanded stepping inside. He hated confrontations, and Derek had reported he was waiting on one more file to come through, one more piece of proof and then he was going to arrest Daniel. Nigel needed to know now.

Daniel spun around, guilt riddled across his face. "Nigel! I…you scared me."

"Your phone is ringing."  
"Oh it…it's just my girlfriend again…nagging me. You…How is Professor Fox?"

"She's no longer your concern." The phone had stopped vibrating for a few seconds then started again, whoever it was calling back. "Why won't you answer your phone, Daniel?"

"What? I…I told you…"

Nigel held out his hand. "Give it to me. I'll let her think it's a wrong number."  
"No! I…I mean…you don't have to do that…I…"

"You should really answer your phone!"

"No!"

Nigel moved forward so quickly that Daniel barely had time to blink. He'd grabbed the phone out of Daniel's pocket and flipped it open.

"Is it done? Is she dead?"

"No," Nigel snarled as the fury mounted inside him. "You and your kind will never be able to touch her!" He snapped the phone closed and threw it at Daniel. "You're a Gural Nataz!"

"NO!" Daniel backed up to the window, his eyes panicked. "I'm not part of them…I…I didn't have a choice! Look they didn't say they were going to kill her, only that they needed to deal with her interference."

"They're the Gural Nataz! What the hell did you think that meant?"

"My father said…"

"Your father? Your father! Is he a member?"

"Look…I…I know it looks bad and I admit I was sent to school there to gain Professor Fox's favour, but then I…I started to get to know her and…and she was so smart and wonderful and I was going to tell my father that I couldn't help him…"

"How noble of you!"

"You don't understand! You don't know what it's like to grow up in a family like mine!"

"Full of thieves and murderers."

"Please, just let me explain…"

"Did you leave Sydney there to die?" Nigel grabbed Daniel by the front of his shirt. "Did you walk her into a trap?"

Daniel shoved him away, he'd had enough. "Back off! I don't have to explain myself to you or anyone else. You don't get it, do you?" He started to move around Nigel. "My father does not take no for an answer. This assignment wasn't offered to me it was ordered."

"You son of a bitch!" Nigel lunged at him and they both went down over the coffee table.

Daniel defended himself and caught Nigel on the jaw, but Nigel had been knocked around plenty in his lifetime and for once, his rage consumed his fear of injury. He grabbed Daniel's leg as the younger man attempted to flee, dodged the kick that Daniel aimed at him, rolled and grabbed one of the heavy pewter candle sticks that had been on the table and brought it down on Daniel's knee.

Daniel screamed and crumpled, wildly threw a punch and connected again with Nigel's jaw. The Englishman saw stars and barely missed the candle stick being thrown at him. He wasn't about to give up, and he again started to lunge, then heard the unmistakable pop of a bullet leaving its chamber. Sharp, intense pain seared through his chest and he stared at Daniel, shocked.

The gun in Daniel's hand was still smoldering a bit from the shot and he looked just as shocked as Nigel was. It was an accident! He'd only meant to defend himself! "No…I…I didn't…"

Nigel had the oddest sensation of déjà vu as he slowly slid to the floor, watching Daniel's panicked face move towards him. At a distance, he saw Derek Lloyd move into his line of site and raise a weapon, heard a muffled warning.

"No…" he whispered as the darkness threatened to claim him, but a second shot was fired and then, Daniel was laying next to him, eyes open in surprise. "Syd…"

"Nigel!" Derek rushed to where Nigel lay bleeding as others rushed in. "Get the Doctor in here now!" he screamed as he dropped next to Nigel and pressed his hands over the wound in the Englishman's chest to apply pressure.

"Oh my god!" Karen cried and rushed to Nigel's side. "What…what happened?"

"Why didn't you wait?" Derek muttered and looked at the blood seeping through his fingers. Nigel's blood. "Damn you why didn't you wait? Where the hell is that Doctor?"

The Doctor hurried in and observed the situation, alarmed. He started to move towards Daniel, lying on the floor but was halted by Derek's cold words.

"He's dead…forget him."

"How do…"

"Because _I_ shot him." Derek glared at him menacingly. "Now get over here God damn it!"

The Doctor quickly reviewed Nigel's condition. "Get him down stairs, now!" he ordered, rising. "Keep pressure on that wound, we have to get him into surgery."

"Karen," Derek said as he started to rise to lift Nigel again and Karen immediately replaced his hands with her own over Nigel's wound.

"Don't let him die, Derek!" she sobbed.

"I'll do my best, sweetheart," he offered as they both headed out. He nodded to his security and indicated Daniel. "Take care of that mess."

* * *

Sydney thought she heard singing. Birds? No, it was more serene. She smiled, it sounded nice, whatever it was. She snuggled down and sighed, then suddenly wondered if she had overslept. What day was it? Was she supposed to be at work?

Concerned she tried to rouse herself and found it more difficult than it usually was. As each layer of sleep peeled away, she became more aware of a throbbing pain in her head that seemed to filter down through the rest of her body. Wow…hangover central! She must have partied hard last night.

Come on, get your ass up, Fox, you have work to do. Again she tried to open her eyes and gasped at the sudden pain all over her body, especially in her right leg. What the hell! Suddenly, she remembered…the betrayal, the cave in, the spiders and then a loud bang, like a gunshot…Nigel!

"Ni…gel…" she moaned.

"Syd!" a familiar voice said over her. "Sydney!"

Sydney's eyelids felt like they were weighted down with molten lava, her tongue felt like sandpaper. "He…hurts…" She heard that same voice cry out for someone, but could not make out what was said. A moment later, she felt a prick in her left arm and someone pulled her eyelid open. GAH! Light...such bright light!

"Sydney?" a female voice cooed. "Can you hear me?"

Barely, she thought. Her ears felt like they were plugged with water. "Y…yes." She was still having trouble with…pop! Ah…finally, she could see. She looked up at the concerned face hovering over her. "Nigel?"

"Oh Syd!" Alan's face suddenly appeared on the other side of her, tears in his eyes. "You're awake!"

"Yeah." Sydney wet her lips and wondered why her mouth was having such a hard time answering the requests from her brain. Why was Alan here? "Dry…"

"We'll give you some water in a moment," The nurse Gene again shined a light in Sydney's eyes, then put two fingers against her wrist and counted the beats on her watch. "You've been asleep for some time, how do you feel?"

That was a loaded question, Sydney thought. "L…lost fight…" With a cement truck she finished in her head. Her mouth just wasn't cooperating. God, it was so hot and dry in here! She asked again for Nigel. "Nigel…"

"Here, Syd." Alan was holding a straw to her lips and Sydney attempted to take in some of the much needed liquid. "Easy…sip it."

"Are you in pain, Sydney?"

"Lot…"

"We can fix that."

Sydney felt another shot in her arm and then the nurse moved out of her line of sight and started talking to someone else. Sydney focused on the man hovering over her. "Alan…why…why are…" She lost that train of thought and started on another. "Where am I?"

"You're safe, Syd."

She winced as she tried to sit up. "Oh...God!"

"Lay still!" Gene ordered and gently put a hand on her chest. "You've been through a lot and your body is still healing."

"Where is…Nigel and…and Daniel?"

"Hush," Alan caressed her face. "Don't worry. Just concentrate on getting better."

This immediately set off alarm bells in Sydney's head and she forced herself to focus. "Where are they? What's happened?"

"Syd…don't get upset." Alan smiled at her. "I'll go and find Nigel. I'm sure he's just resting. We've all been very worried about you.

"I don't believe you!"

"Nigel is fine," Derek Lloyd's voice carried across the threshold from where he now stood in the doorway. "He's been hovering at your bedside for several days and he needs to rest."

She turned her head slightly as the agent moved into her line of vision. Oh lord, what was going on? "You…kidnapped…Nigel."

He smirked. "You're never gonna let me forget that, are you?"

"Never," she vowed. "What about Daniel?"

"It's need to know," Derek stated as he pulled the sheets up around her, as though she were a child. "Now shut up and settle down or I'll have the nurse sedate you."

"Why you rotten…"

Syd! Please!" Alan implored.

"Professor Fox!" Gene gently pushed Derek away and stepped up to Sydney. "I know you are feeling displaced and concerned for your friends, but everything is under control and you have suffered some severe injuries. You must remain calm and reasonably still or you will pull your stitches and damage yourself further." She changed out Sydney's bag of saline. "That will only cause more stress to your friends who have been very worried about you. Now, this has a pain killer in it and will ease a good deal of your discomfort."

Sydney settled down, begrudgingly. "Just…just tell me the truth…Are Nigel and Daniel okay?"

"There is nothing to worry about," Derek insisted.

"Where am I?"

"You're at a facility we use for injured or recovering agents," he offered. "Don't worry, you're getting the best care possible."

Alan took Sydney's hand. "See, everything is going to be okay. You're going to be okay." He ran a hand over her hair, caressing. "God, Syd. I thought I'd lost you."

Sydney smiled up at him, glad to see him, and yet, her thoughts turned back to Nigel.

Derek returned down stairs to the kitchen, poured a cup of coffee, then tilted a brass light fixture on the wall by the sink and watched the opposite wall silently slide open. He stepped through to a secret staircase that led to the basement area, which would not be found on any blueprints of the property.

Harsh florescent ceiling lights bounced of the dark grey walls as he stalked down the long corridor and stopped at one of the doors. He keyed in a five digit code and pulled the door open. Inside Another agent stood by the door and acknowledged him, and a trembling, grief-stricken woman sat rocking herself in one of the comfortable chairs.

"Here." He offered Karen the cup of coffee and she took it with trembling hands.

"I can't take this," she muttered. "First Sydney, then Daniel and now Nigel…I can't deal with all of this."

Derek settled in the chair next to her. "You have to. We all have to." He understood how she felt. He wished he could bring Daniel Parkins just so he could beat him to death, instead of the easy, quick way he had died.

He was relieved that Sydney finally woke up, although he thought it a strange coincidence how she woke up after, well almost instantly the moment Nigel Bailey had been injured. The nurse had advised him the moment she had woken, and he was still carrying Nigel to surgery. They wouldn't have heard the gunshot; most of the house was soundproofed.

He'd turned Nigel over to The Doctor and Nurse Irene and then quickly scrubbed the blood of his hands, ran upstairs, changed his shirt and went to check on Sydney. It irked him to find Alan at her side, especially as the first person she asked for was Nigel. He wondered if Sydney realized how wrong that seemed?

Now, Nigel was inside the other room fighting for his life and Derek blamed himself. He never should have divulged his information about Daniel, never should have broken the 'need to know' code.

He never expected his little English buddy to confront the American and cause such a horrible result. In all that he knew about Nigel Bailey, all the years he had known him the former TA for Sydney Fox had never been confrontational. He smirked at the irony. When had Nigel grown some balls? Not that Nigel had ever backed down from trouble, but bravery and daring were two very different things. He usually left that end of things to Sydney Fox.

He shook his head. He still had trouble remembering that Nigel and Sydney weren't together anymore. That seemed wrong too. He'd had a thing for Sydney for years, what red blooded male wouldn't, but he recognized something in the pair's relationship that obviously neither Sydney or Nigel had yet admitted to. Because Nigel was his friend, he had backed off Sydney.

What really pissed him off is how had his men missed that Parkins had been carrying? They had all be thoroughly searched when the arrived and scanned. Where was the hole in his security? That would be something else he'd have to deal with. Later. He'd deal with it later.

He couldn't worry about anything else right now, except that his friend, perhaps his only friend, could be dying on the others side of that wall. Derek prided himself on being afraid of nothing, and yet, the idea that Nigel might die terrified him.


	15. Recovery

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Please note that the last chapter was cut off on upload and I did not notice until **_Harleyzgirl's _**review, so thanks to her I have corrected the last few lines in that chapter. Thanks to **_Harleyzgirl, Yvarlcris , Celeste. for reviewing. _**Hope you enjoy this chapter and please, if you read it, please review. **_

**CHAPTER 15**

Nigel awoke slowly, his brain felt…liquefied and his body heavy, as if he was pinned under something. He tried to focus, tried to kick-start his mentality and as his eyes opened; a piercing white light almost blinded him.

He groaned in protest and closed his eyes again, shutting out the brightness, then felt a light pressure on his shoulder; different from the overall weightiness of his limbs.

"Nigel?"

That voice, he knew that voice from…somewhere.

"Nigel? Wake up, Nigel."

Karen! It was Karen. But what was Karen doing in England?

"He's still under the anesthesia."

Nigel didn't recognize that voice and became concerned. Why would he be under a dead Romanov princess?

"I…I thought I saw his eyes open."

Karen, such a nice, friendly girl.

"He came through the surgery well, but he's just going to need some time to recover."

Surgery! Great Scott! What? Wait...How did Clark Kent get in here? Oh, that was him. He mentally screamed at his inability to focus. Open. Eyes.

"Nigel!"

There she was! He managed a slight smile for her, willing her not to worry, but unable to form the comforting words with his tongue.

She bent down, kissed his lips and carefully hugged him. "Oh, Nigel! Thank God!"

Yes, thank God, and thank strawberry flavored lip gloss, quite tasty after his ordeal. Which ordeal was that anyway? "Wha…hap…" He managed through the cotton balls in his mouth.

"Sssh…don't talk, don't waste your strength."

He didn't have any strength; he was a big blob of jelly. "Kar…Ple…" He rolled his eyes frustrated and remembered them saying something earlier about anesthesia. Had he been put under for some reason? He didn't often react well with that particular drug, which could probably explain his befuddled state and swollen tongue syndrome.

A man that he didn't recognize stepped up, wearing hospital scrubs. A doctor! Brilliant, his mind was coming back around just to state the obvious. Well, something was better than nothing.

"Feel a little discombobulated, Mr. Bailey?" The Doctor smiled.

"Lot," Nigel managed.

"That will wear off shortly, I'd give you a shot of adrenalin but I don't want to increase your heart rate too fast, right after surgery."

"What…" Nigel closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, frustrated.

"You were shot, Nigel." Karen offered appearing on the other side of him now. "By Daniel, remember?"

"Dan…?" Daniel…who was…Oh, right. Sydney's new assistant. But why would he shoot him? "Why?" he asked. He honestly didn't remember.

Karen exchanged a look with The Doctor who shook his head, then she looked back down at Nigel. "It doesn't matter. We'll explain it later."

"How is he?"

Who was that, Nigel wondered. The voice sounded familiar but he simply didn't have the strength to sit up.

"He'll be fine, but I don't want him climbing any stairs or moving around too much for awhile."

"I'll have a room set up for him downstairs."

"Der…ek?"

The Doctor was replaced by Derek Lloyd's familiar face. "Yeah, it's me. Falling out of trees again?"

Nigel managed another smile. "Is that…relic…or happy…see me?"

"Nah, it's something else entirely." Derek's face broke out in a grin, before he quickly masked it. "I took care of Daniel."

"He…he doesn't remember what happened, Derek," Karen advised quietly.

"What hap…Daniel?"

Derek shook his head. "Not important. Listen, do you remember finding Sydney and me bringing you here?"

Nigel nodded. "How…is she?"

"She's awake!" Karen smiled. "She's doing really well, but asking for you."

Nigel immediately tried to rise and was pushed back by Derek and the Doctor, not that he needed both men to keep him down; he was so weak he could barely move. "Must…see…"

"Later, Mr. Bailey," The Doctor warned. "You were shot, whether you remember it or not, and if you move around too much you'll ruin all that lovely stitching I did, and I will be quite cross."

"Please…want to see…Syd."

"She isn't going anywhere, buddy," Derek offered and patted his shoulder. "And neither are you. Just relax, you'll see her soon."

"Please, Nigel," Karen asked with a watery smile, even as a tear spilled down her cheek. "I'm on my last nerve and if you hurt yourself again I'll just have to kill you myself to avoid the nervous breakdown."

Nigel smiled and sighed. "Okay." He managed to lift his hand and catch the tear with his finger. "Don't…cry…angel."

His tender words made her cry even harder, and she leaned forward to lay her head on his chest to try and hide them.

* * *

Sydney tossed her magazine aside with a growl. She was going stir crazy laying here! Her leg was hurting, but she didn't want anymore pain medication. Her body felt battered and bruised, but she could deal with it. What she couldn't deal with was being a prisoner in this damn bed!

The shades were drawn on the windows so she couldn't even look outside, all she had was the little lamp on the bedside or the harsher florescent ceiling light, which was currently off. She'd read through about a dozen magazines that Karen had provided, and finally got mean enough to send the nurse shuffling off for awhile.

Alan had been checking in on her about every hour, so he was probably due again. It was sweet that he was so concerned, but she was at the point of screaming every time he poked his head in the door. She couldn't take the hovering, and she couldn't take being left alone.

It was probably just cold feet, but she no longer felt sure about marrying Alan. She knew he loved her and she cared deeply for him, but was it enough? She'd promised to retire from the university and relic hunting, but could she really?

After this last time, she was certainly considering it. She'd never come so close to death, and the worst part? The part that frightened her the most? She would have died alone. She'd never had that fear when she was with Nigel. And yet, he still found her, saved her, even after their many years apart.

She couldn't remember what she might have said to him in her delusion, but she hoped she hadn't embarrassed either of them. She didn't recall him finding her or getting out of the cave, except for one blurry memory of him holding her, saying 'I got you.' She would remember that for the rest of her life because at that moment, so close to death, she received hope. Hope and the knowledge that she was no longer alone.

Where the hell was Nigel anyway? Why hadn't he come to see her? She kept getting different stories, he was sleeping. He was working on something with Derek. He was on a conference call from London. Lies, all lies and they had to know she didn't believe one of them.

She didn't have a clock in the room to tell her what time it was. What the hell was up with that? In a way, she felt like she was back in that cursed room at Tslarov's. She shook that feeling away. These people were her friends, even if they were keeping something from her about Nigel. She'd learn the truth eventually.

She turned to stare at a painting on the wall, a rendering of The Path Not Taken. That certainly applied to her. She'd chosen her career over marriage and family. The thrill of the hunt over the love of one man, until recently, when she had accepted Alan's proposal. But even now, she was struggling with herself to decide if she accepted because she loved him and was ready to settle down, or because she was afraid she would never find anyone else willing to spend their life with her.

When Nigel left it had devastated her. She hadn't expected to feel his loss so keenly, which was why she encouraged him to take the position in England. She had never realized how much she had come to depend on him, not just at work but in her personal life as well.

There was no longer a shoulder to lean on when a date went bad, or someone to call over and watch movies when she was feeling so lonely she couldn't stand it and she didn't want to put up with the usual games that a regular date would entail.

She smiled a little. No one to fill her secret candy jar in her desk, no one to compliment her on her new shoes, and actually mean it without wanting to get her out of said shoes and into her pants. No one to share a joke with, or the hope for a great student.

She even missed him when she was grading her stupid exam papers. Nigel would go through them so fast. Sometimes she would peer at him through the window in her office, watch him hunched over his desk, chewing on his pen and sometimes tsking or shaking his head at a wrong answer, then grinning at a correct answer.

She missed his daily interaction with Karen while the blonde was trying to flirt, and his horrible puns at the worst times when they were on a hunt. She always laughed, at least inside she did. Even the way he smelled, when she entered the office and moved towards him and that delicious cologne he wore.

Then, he was gone. His desk was empty, there was no more, masculine smells, no more flustering around Karen, no kindness for a student, no late night phone calls or refilled candy. He was gone, and so was the light that had been the Ancient Studies office.

She had tried to keep in touch with him, but talking to him made her heart ache, so she reverted to texts and emails, only he could be delightfully tender and witty with words as well and so the result was the same. She'd saved every one of his emails and texts, had read them over and over, even though she had stopped sending any replies.

She needed to move on and so did he, and so she convinced herself that the only way to get over missing Nigel was to keep busy and not talk to him so much. Then she though about how that would hurt him. She was sure he would call her, to ask what was wrong, assume he had done something wrong, but he hadn't. He'd let their contact fall by the wayside and didn't pressure her to reconnect.

Had she hurt him or had he just moved on with his life better than she? Maybe she had been kidding herself with how close they had been? God knew she wasn't always the best judge of character when it came to men, but Nigel…well Nigel was different. Or so she thought.

She heard the door knob rattle and, in a moment of cowardice, she lay her head back and closed her eyes as the door opened. She knew that it was Alan, could smell the light scent of his aftershave as he leaned down to kiss her forehead and pull the covers just a little higher around her. She willed herself breathe normally and keep her eyes closed, she just couldn't face talking to him again, listening to all his hopes and plans for their future.

Finally, he moved away and she heard the click of the door. She opened her eyes and found herself alone, once more. A horrible shame crawled through her for hiding from Alan, and she knew she couldn't keep pretending. She needed to talk to Nigel. Once she did things could be put in perspective, but she absolutely couldn't wait any longer.


	16. Likewise and Longing

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only. Thanks for your patience, I hope this chapter was worth it. New job this week so have not had much time to update**_. _**Hope you enjoy and please, please review. **_

**CHAPTER 16**

Sydney opened her eyes and they immediately watered at the beautiful sight of her best friend and former partner staring down at her. "Nigel!" she almost sobbed and lifted her arms towards him.

"Oh, Syd." He moved in and hugged her, trying not to wince when her grip grew so tight that it pulled at his injuries. "I thought I'd lost you."

"Likewise!" she murmured against his cheek, reveling in the feel of him and never wanting to let go. He even smelled the same. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again."

"Likewise," he returned softly and let her hold him as long as she needed to. God he loved her.

After sleeping for another almost twelve hours, he had awoken in a bedroom downstairs; his mind free of the anesthesia and clear to remember the incident with Daniel. And that memory recalled his thoughts at the moment he believed would be his last. It was for her, for the woman he admired, adored and above all, loved.

He'd waited until Karen, who had been hovering over him when he had woken up, left and then pulled off the machine sensors, carefully sat up and pulled on a robe that he had found hanging in the bedroom closet. It had taken him more time than usual to climb the stairs, and at one point he had considered going back because of the pain from his injury, but he pushed forward.

He had needed to see Sydney, he knew that if she was awake and he wasn't there she would hurt herself trying to get to him, and that revelation alone was enough to keep him moving. Everything was changed now. They had been apart and he had learned that his leaving had hurt her far more that he had ever realized. Now, they had found each other again, and he meant to never leave her again. If that mean sharing her with Alan, so be it.

Sydney released him enough to look him in the eye again. "You rescued me."

"I figured it was due." He pulled back and carefully sat on the bed facing her. "You've pulled my arse from the fire more than once."

She wound her fingers through his. "I was so scared, Nigel. I've never been that scared in my life."

"Likewise!" He squeezed her hand. "I couldn't think of anything but finding you."

"I don't think I'll be going spelunking or ruin crawling anytime soon."

"Bullox! You'll be at it again the minute you're back on your feet." And he'd be right there beside her, his position at Oxford be damned.

She smiled at him. God, he knew her so well. She didn't ask how he knew she had been in trouble or where to find her. He was her partner, he would always know. "Where's Daniel, Nigel? Did he go back to the States?"

Nigel looked down at their joined hands and struggled with what to tell her. In the end, there was no question. He would always tell her the truth. "Syd…Daniel…He was working with the Gural Nutaz."

Sydney stared at him in disbelief as the horrible sense of betrayal caused her stomach to revolt. "No…he…he couldn't…"

"It was all a trap, Syd. There was no Sumerian relic. Daniel used the medallion to lure you to the ruins where the Gural Nataz ambushed you."

Sydney struggled to remember what had happened before the cave in, but she couldn't. She shook her head, miserably. "Why won't they leave us alone, Nigel?" she moaned, miserably. "Why do they ruin everything?"

"I don't know." He wouldn't tell her of Daniel's death unless she asked him directly. Omission is not dishonest if it's done to spare more pain to the one you care for.

Sydney bit her lip, a collection of fear, anger and sadness flooded her. Things were never easy. She'd been so careful when selecting Daniel. She'd thought he had such great potential. He'd been so persistent, so eager about history and to help her in any way. He…

"Oh God!" Of course he was persistent, he'd needed to become her assistant to fulfill the plans of the Gural Nataz. God she was such an idiot!

"Sydney."

She lifted her gaze to his, her eyes misted in sorrow and shame.

Nigel met her gaze squarely in what was his best, no nonsense look. "This is not your fault."

Her eyes watered even more, no one knew her better than Nigel. "But I…"

"No." He taped his index finger against her forehead. "Get it out of your head. There are things even you can't control."

"I trust too easily, you…you said yourself sometimes…"

"It isn't about trust, Syd. What sort of person would you be if you suspected everyone?" He tilted his head and smiled. "You wouldn't be my Sydney, my friend and mentor. You wouldn't be the person you are at all."

She stared at him, His Sydney, was she really his? Did he really think of her that way, because he would always be Her Nigel. God, when had things gotten so complicated?

She reached for him again, folded her arms around him as he leaned into her embrace. "I've missed you." Her heart filled with emotion at being able to hug him again. She hadn't taken advantage of him being there before, when they had worked together, she should have hugged him every day. She realized that after he was gone.

"I've missed you, too."

She sat back and wiped at the moisture on her cheeks. She wouldn't waste any more time on Daniel, the Gural Nataz or anything else negative. "How was your lecture?" she asked, changing the subject.

"It went very well, thank you for asking." He hadn't even thought of his lecture or his responsibilities from the moment Daniel told him that Sydney was missing. He supposed he should contact the Dean at Oxford and see if he still had a job.

"Here we go, sweetheart!" Alan announced as he entered the room with a tray of food. "This will…Oh…Sorry, Nigel. I didn't know you were in here."

Nigel glanced at him, then back at Sydney and smiled with a humor he no longer had. "I'll come back and visit later," he promised and carefully stood.

Sydney wanted to throw something at Alan for interrupting them, but then she felt horribly ashamed. How could she feel that way about the man she was set to marry?

Alan hesitated in the doorway. "I can come back…"

"No." Nigel slowly straightened, careful not to pull his stitches. He was already sweating with the effort of maintaining a carefree façade and the pain was becoming too much. "She's probably hungry."

"I can feed her later."

Sydney bristled. "She can feed herself."

"No, you go ahead," Nigel moved away from the bed. "You guys have a lot to talk about."

Alan smiled at him. "We do, that's for sure."

"Hello?" Sydney waved her hand. "She is in the room and can speak for herself!"

Nigel offered her a small smile then said to Alan. "Careful, she's grumpy. Make sure if you feed her you get back all your fingers."

"Nigel!" Sydney grinned and threw one of her pillows at him, then immediately winced.

Alan laughed and moved further into the room.

Nigel stepped out into the hall, held Sydney's gaze for a moment longer then quietly closed the door. He put his hand against the door, as if he could feel her presence through it. "I love you, Syd," he murmured.

Alan set the tray on the night stand and attempted to get Sydney in a better mood. He picked up her pillow, carefully placing it behind her again. "There you go, sweetheart. Nice and comfy again?"

Sydney bared her teeth. "Don't coddle me, Alan."

He scowled and offered her a glass of juice. "I'm not coddling you, Sydney. I'm taking care of you, there is a difference."

"I don't need to be taken care of!"

"Why does it always have to be about what you need? Can't I just do it because I care about you?"

Sydney ignored the glass and leaned back against the pillows. Damn it! She was doing it again, picking a fight. "I'm sorry. I'm…I just hate being trapped in this bed!"

Alan set the glass of juice back on the tray and settled beside her. "I know, but you almost died, Sydney. You can't just hop up and start running around, especially with that leg."

She sighed. "I know, I know!" Her horrible experience hadn't slipped her mind, but it was in the past and she was a person that lived in the present, at least with her personal life. "Did Nigel call you to come here?"

"No, Karen did."

"Karen's here too?"

"Yes, Nigel called her when he and Daniel brought you to the hospital in Mexico." He offered her a forkful and after a moment's hesitation, Sydney opened her mouth.

"This is demeaning."

"How so?"

"You feeding me! I can feed myself, you know?"

Alan smiled at her. "Of course you can, but then it's no fun for me."

Sydney shook her head and smiled. "You spoil me. I'm not used to it."

"Get used to it, because I intend to go on spoiling you and our children the moment we're married."

The eggs Sydney just swallowed seemed to stick in her throat. "Yeah…" She suddenly wasn't hungry anymore. She turned her head away when Alan offered her another forkful. "I'm tired, Alan. Mind if I eat the rest later?"

He nodded, put the plate back on the tray and rose. "Of course." He tucked the sheets around her and leaned down to kiss her lips. "You rest. You'll be all better soon and we can get back to planning our wedding and our life together."

Sydney managed a smile, but her chest felt like fifty tons had dropped upon it. She watched him leave and immediately wished she could call Nigel back. She needed someone to talk to. Or maybe Karen, but no, she had said she wanted to rest, so she couldn't call anyone back in.

She turned toward the chair that the nurse had occupied earlier, even she had deserted the ship. She sighed and decided to take a nap after all.

Nigel had almost made it back to his room when Derek intercepted him and quickly tossed an arm around the Englishman in support.

"You were told stay in bed," he warned as he helped Nigel into his bedroom. "You're not better yet."

"I'm not dead," Nigel muttered and winced as Derek carefully helped him settle on the bed. "That's better."

"You're gonna pull your stitches if you keep getting up and walking around."

"I had to see her." Nigel lay back and sighed in relief. "She had to see me."

Derek handed Nigel a couple of pain pills and a glass of water from the pitcher by the bed. "True, she didn't believe me anymore."

"You were lying to her."

"I wasn't lying to her, I said you were resting." Derek smirked. "Did _you_ tell her you were shot?"

Nigel shook his head. "That's different."

"How?"

Nigel looked at him. "She expects lies from you, so she'd just keep questioning and if she didn't get the answer she wanted she would have tried to get out of that bed and find out what was going on."

"Which is worse, then? Being lied to by someone you expect to be a liar, or from someone you expect to tell the truth?"

Nigel flushed and waved his hand at him, agitated. "Bugger off."

"Why'd you cut your visit so short anyway?"

"Alan came in with her breakfast."

Derek glared at him. "And you just let him intrude? That was your time with Sydney! You put yourself in mortal danger to get to her so he could have left you to it!"

"I wasn't in mortal danger and he's her fiancé…"

"Bullshit! Stop using that as an excuse. You and I both know she has no business marrying that guy and you sure as hell shouldn't be enabling him."

Nigel sighed and waved his hands. "Go away, Derek." He didn't want to talk about this now. He needed to get his feelings under control again. Seeing Sydney awake had helped, now he knew she would be okay, but seeing her, holding her, had released a flood of emotions he hadn't expected to have and he needed to sort out how to deal with them.

Derek shrugged. "Fine, but you're screwing this up, my friend."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"The hell you don't. Do something about it, for Christ's sake!"

Nigel stared at Derek, pained. "I can't!"

"You can!"

"It's not that easy, Derek. I…"

"Don't you start spouting garbage about having no rights with her because you have every right and you know it! No one knows Sydney like the two of us do, and I know that she doesn't want to spend her life with some Hawaiian beach-bum she wants to grow old with a tight-assed Englishman!"

"No, Derek." Nigel shook his head, miserably. "She doesn't. You're right, I do know Sydney and I know that she doesn't feel that way about me. Pressing her to feel more than she does is not fair to either of us and if you knew her as much as you pretend to you'd also know that she doesn't react well to being pressured." He sighed and closed his eyes. "Now please, I need to rest."

Instead of leaving, Derek settled in an arm chair beside the bed.

Nigel opened one eye and glared at him. "What are you doing?"

"Making sure you don't go on any more excursions."

"I haven't the energy to anyway."

"Sore?"

"Yes."

"In a lot of pain?"

"Enough."

Derek crossed his arms over his chest. 'Good, maybe next time you'll do as you're told when the Doctor tells you to keep to bed."

"Oh, do shut up."

Derek grinned. "Is that anyway to talk to a friend?"

"When I see a friend I shall ask him," Nigel retorted and then opened both eyes. "Did you find out anything about how Daniel got that gun in?"

"Why, you ready to strap on the side irons for another confrontational shoot out?"  
Nigel shook his head. "No." What he had done was stupid, no doubt, and he could see that now, but at the time he had just been so furious. "I didn't expect him to have a gun."

"What did you expect him to do when you confronted him?"

Nigel hadn't expected anything, for once his rage had consumed his reason. He shrugged. "A thrashing I suppose," he admitted honestly.

Derek sat forward and shook his head. "For you or for him?"

Nigel lifted his chin, defiantly. "I would have gotten a few licks in before he beat me to a pulp."

Derek laughed and rose. He patted Nigel's shoulder. "I bet you would have, my friend. Are you hungry? Want some tea or something? That is what you English drink isn't it? Tea?"

"Yes, however I would prefer a coffee if you have it and tea is a far more civilized than some of the things you Americans drink."

Derek wiggled his eyebrows. "We'll test that theory once you're better." He moved to the door, turned and pointed at Nigel. "Stay."

"Bloody aarff."

"I mean it. I don't want to have to strap you down."

"I never knew you were into that sort of thing, Derek."

Derek shook his head. The Englishman's wit was returning, he would be fine. "Once you're better we can go to a few places I know and discuss exactly what I'm into, old man."

Nigel pretended to shudder. "No thank you."

Derek saluted him and went out, closing the door. Less than two minutes later, Gene appeared, gave him a scolding look and started to hook him back up to the heart monitor and IV drip.

"I don't need…."

One look from her and he was silenced. He sighed and let her do as she pleased.


	17. In Truth There is Hope

_**DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I am using them for entertainment purposes, only Sorry for the Hiatus everyone, started a new job couple of weeks ago and the comute is murder, only have time to write and update on the weekend, when I am not doing a hundred other things.**_

_**Anyway, thanks for your patience, Celeste this chapter is especially for you, hope you enjoy it Will do my very best to get more up in a shorter time, but please bear with me. And as always, please...please review. It is the milk that sustains me. P. S. Check out my little Castle Blurb after last week's show...felt it was unfinished.**_

**CHAPTER 17**

* * *

"She'll be flying back to the states soon and then you'll have lost the chance."

"Derek, would you please stop interfering…" Lloyd had come in just as Karen was saying goodbye, she would be flying back to America that afternoon to deal with the chaos at Trinity, and the moment Karen had left the room the agent had started in about Nigel's lack of gumption.

"You can't let her marry Alan! He's not suited to her at all!"

"I see, and I suppose you're thinking of someone like, oh possibly a CIA agent, that would be better suited?"

"Well, frankly yes, I am better than surfer boy, but I was thinking more about you."

"Me! Sydney doesn't feel that way about me!"

"How do you know?"

"I was her friend and partner for over seven years, I know!"

"You only think you know. For someone with such intelligence you can be such an idiot sometimes, my friend."

"I beg your pardon!"  
"Sure, I forgive that you can be an idiot, but I won't forgive that you're willing to let the woman you were meant to be with walk out of your life to marry another man."

"It isn't that simple…"

"You and Sydney excel at 'not that simple'. Tell her how you feel!"

"You don't understand!" Nigel had considered it before, and always Sydney put a quick halt to such notions, much to his chagrin. She was never cruel about it but she was insistent. "I've seen the men she goes out with, I am not her type."

"Which is exactly why you're her type."

"That makes no sense whatsoever!"

For God's sake, Nigel…you got shot defending her honor! Type or not you are the one she needs!"

"No…yes…it…you're confusing things…

"Look, Syd has been dating her usual type for years, but nothing ever stuck, right? That's because she wasn't dating the kind of man she should be dating…" Derek growled and rose. "Sweet Christ now I'm Dr. Phil. Look…I am the least likely person to ask for advice on relationships, but what I am an expert in is missed opportunity, and I am telling you that you are missing a huge opportunity here! One that you and she will regret the rest of your lives. Think about it."

Nigel watched Derek walk out of the room and close the door, then turned his gaze to the ceiling. Could it be true? No…it would be ludicrous if after all this time Syd had any real feelings of passion for him. She'd encouraged him to date other women for heaven's sake and she…she…

He thought back to what Karen had said, how Sydney had not realized how much she would miss him; devastated was the term Karen used. Was that true or was Karen mistaken? No, Karen was not one to say such things unless she was sure of them. But Surely that was just a testament to their friendship. They had worked together for a very long time, it was natural to miss the other.

Still, devastated was not a word he would have associated with Sydney, certainly not caused by his leaving. He had seen her devastated only once before, when she found DaViega that one time, and then her nemesis has escaped.

He moaned in frustration and carefully swung his legs over the bed. He plucked the IV with his medication off, then paused for a minute to adjust for the uncomfortable feeling that would come when he stood.

He was very sore still, but right now he needed to go talk to Sydney. He wouldn't be able to rest until he found out for himself if she actually did have feelings for him.

He opened the bedroom door and was immediately met by a scowling nurse, arms folded across her chest; baring his way into the hall.

"Where do you think you're going?" Jean demanded.

"I need to see Sydney."

"Doctor says you're to stay in bed until tomorrow."

"Please? I just have to talk to her for five minutes. I promise to come right back."

Jean scowled disapprovingly. "Do you want me to get in trouble with The Doctor, Mr. Bailey?"

"Two minutes. I'll be there and back again in no time and I promise to tell The Doctor I knocked you unconscious and stole away while you were sleeping."

Jean scoffed. "As if you could take me…" She lifted her nose and turned her cheek slightly. "I suppose I could go to ladies room and not see you sneak out…" She didn't even get to finish for Nigel was kissing her cheek and hurrying down the hall as fast as his injury would allow. "Two minutes, Mr. Bailey, or there will be hell to pay!"

Nigel waved and disappeared up the stairs.

Jean smirked and touched her cheek where he'd kissed it. What a nice young man. She closed the bedroom door and wandered off to the washroom at a leisurely stroll.

Nigel climbed the stairs as quick as he dared, despite the tightness it caused in his chest. He headed straight for Sydney's room and then paused just outside the door; which was slightly ajar. He could hear Sydney talking.

"No, I can't! Please, don't leave me! Nigel!"

Nigel pushed the door open and stepped inside. Sydney seemed to be having a nightmare and Alan was attempting to calm her.

"It's okay, Syd. Wake up, it's just a dream, sweetheart. You have to wake up."

"I can't…I don't want to die…Nigel! Nigel, help me. Nigel, come back, please!"

Nigel moved forward, ignored Alan's disgruntled look and stepped to the opposite side of the bed. He laid one hand on her brow as the other captured her waving hand. "I'm here Syd."

She seemed to calm almost immediately to his touch. "Nigel," she sighed and settled down.

"I'm right here, Syd."

"It was a nightmare," Alan explained, glancing at where Nigel was holding Sydney's hand and trying to ignore the flare of jealously that reared up inside him. "I couldn't get her to wake up. I was afraid she was going to hurt herself."

Nigel nodded and sat down on the bed, never taking his hand from hers. "She doesn't get them often, but she's been through a lot."

"I don't understand why she wouldn't wake up for me, I've known her longer than you have."

Nigel watched Sydney for a moment, confirming that she was at ease again, then to Alan said. " Syd and I spent almost every waking hour together for almost a decade. She's used to me being with her." He smirked at Alan. "Especially in terrifying and intense situations."

Alan nodded. "Sure, of course. " Naturally Sydney would respond to Nigel; the two were close friends."But you haven't been together in several years."

Nigel regarded Sydney for a long moment. "No," he agreed. He meant to change that. He glanced at Alan again. "Do you mind if I have a few minutes?"

Alan nodded and felt his irritation ebb. Nigel was almost as pale as Sydney and was Sydney's closest friend; they'd both been through a hell of a lot. How could he begrudge them some time together? If it hadn't been for Nigel, Sydney wouldn't even be alive today.

"Absolutely. Take your time." He stepped out and closed the door.

Nigel watched him leave and held his tongue until the door completely closed. "Wanker." He turned back to Sydney, startled to find her eyes open and watching him.

"Nigel," she admonished with a slow, sleepy smile. "Such language"

"You're supposed to be asleep."

Sydney struggled to shake the cobwebs from her head. God, what a horrible dream she was having. "I was dreaming."

"Yes, I heard you screaming down the hall."

She raised her eyebrows. "Really?" She looked at their joined hands. "Did you come to rescue me?"

"Something like that." Nigel reluctantly pulled his hand away. "I can't stay long, Syd, but I wanted to show you something." He pulled up his shirt and showed her the bandage where he had been shot.

She reached for it and started to sit up. "Nigel! What happened?"

"Daniel shot me."

Her eyes went wide. "What! W…Why? Oh God, Nigel…are you…"

"Oy! Easy, easy... I'm fine, as you can see for yourself. Just a little sore and I'm ordered to rest in bed."

She reached to touch his wound, but he pulled his shirt back down. "I'm so sorry, Nigel."

"I didn't tell you to make you feel badly, I just felt odd not being completely honest with you."

She sat up fully and carefully wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh, Nigel."

"Oh God. Stop that nonsense." He hugged her quick then pulled away. "It isn't as if we haven't faced worse."

"But you were shot!"

"Yes. And you were almost crushed and buried alive, so between the two of us we're either the most fortunate or the most ill-fated people on the planet."

Sydney smirked. "I'm glad you told me. I suspected something was off when you came to see me."

"Yes. Well, bloodhound that you are, I preferred to turn myself in rather than get mangled by your razor sharp teeth."

Sydney ran her tongue over her teeth, thoughtfully. "Speaking of, I really need a toothbrush."

"I'll pass the message along." He rolled his neck around on his shoulders, they were getting off track. "Syd, I wanted to be honest with you and I…I hope that you can be honest with me."

"Always, Nigel."

"Do you love Alan?"

"I…"

Nigel could tell he had startled her with the question. "All right, we'll get back to that one. Were you upset by my leaving Trinity?"

Sydney lowered her eyes. She'd promised the truth between them. "Yes."

"How upset?"

She wrapped her arms around herself and sat back against the pillows. "Very."

"Why didn't you ask me to stay?"

She shook her head. "I couldn't stand in your way, Nigel. The position they offered was your dream job. If I had been selfish and begged you to stay you would have resented me for it."

"Or, perhaps I would have stayed and never gave it another thought."

Sydney lifted her gaze to his, unaware of the hope shining in her eyes, the hope and the despair at having missed the chance. "Really?"

"Syd, how can you even ask me that?" He reached for her hand again. "You know how much you mean to me, you and Karen, the kids at Trinity. You're all like my family."

"I thought you were homesick for England."

"I was, and then I was homesick for you, and for America. Syd, no one can have everything they want."

"You had a choice…."

"A choice that was no choice, Syd. Everyone was telling me to take the job, especially you. I felt…" He released her hand and sighed. "I felt as if you were pushing me to take the position, as if...you wanted to find someone else to be your partner."

"No! No, Nigel…never!" She moved in to hug him again. "God, I was so stupid. I was trying to do what was best for you and not let my feelings get in the way." She pulled back just enough to meet his gaze. "But I was wrong to push you to go. I should have begged you to stay, I wanted to. Nothing worked right after you left."

He smiled and touched his forehead to hers. "It…I'm very glad to hear you say that, Sydney."

"I should have said it sooner."

"Yes, that would have been better, but we can't change the past." He kissed her forehead and then pulled away as he rose. "I better get back."

"Nigel, does…do you want to come back to..." She almost said her but quickly substituted a safer word. "Trinity?"

"I'm not sure. I know that I've missed you. I've even missed the madness that working with you entails, at least on some degree." He opened the door and paused to look back at her. "Let's talk some more about it when we're both in better shape, yeah?"

She smiled at nodded. "Absolutely."

"And, Syd?"

"Yes?"

"No rash decisions till we talk, okay?"

Sydney wasn't sure what he meant but she nodded. "I promise."

He smiled. "Good. Good." He wiggled his fingers at her in a shy wave, she returned it as he closed the door.

He leaned against it for a moment, tried to get his racing heart to slow down. He saw something, something in her eyes that he hadn't noticed before. Or perhaps he had noticed it and pretended not to.

She wanted him back, whether it was as her friend and her partner or something more he didn't know, but there was something in her eyes...and it gave him hope.

He smiled again. "Well, Alan, let's hope you're up for a little competition," he murmured as he carefully started down the stairs.

A figure emerged from the shadows on the landing opposite Sydney's room. He moved towards the stairs and stood at the railing, watching the Englishman's slow progress. A match flared as Derek Lloyd touched the flame to his cigar and slowly smiled.

* * *

Sydney smiled as Alan settled her on a bench in the back yard, careful of her leg cast. "I was beginning to forget what outside felt like!" she sighed. "I'm so tired of that bedroom!"

"Do you want a blanket or a pillow?"

"God, no! I'm fine, just like this." She batted her eyes at him. "Although a coffee would be heavenly!"

Alan grinned. "Coming up."

She watched him go back through the patio doors, just as Nigel came outside. He waved at her, walked up and settled on the bench, slowly because he was still recovering.

"I've been liberated from the bedroom."

"Hey, me too!" She grinned. "Feels like we're playing hooky, doesn't it?"

"Somewhat." He stared out at the horizon and clasped his fingers together. "Syd…I…need to say something and I want you to promise not to say anything until I'm finished, or I'll not be able to get through it."

"I thought we were gonna wait to talk…"

"It's separate, well not completely but…Could you just listen please?" Before he lost his nerve completely.

She nodded and gave him her full attention. She rarely saw him this serious.

"I know I hurt you by leaving." He lifted his gaze to hers and watched in a very rare moment as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She immediately opened her mouth to deny it but he put his fingers to her lips. "Don't. I suspected it, deep down when you started to distance yourself, but I convinced myself it was simply that you were so busy, and you never were good at keeping in touch with your friends anyway."

Sydney lowered her eyes and reached over to put her hand over his joined ones. He turned them over and gently captured her palm.

"Karen proved me to be an idiot for not listening to myself from the beginning and I…I wanted to say that I never, ever meant to cause you any distress."

Sydney couldn't hold back. "I know that, Nigel."

"Shut up," he warned, mildly, even as he offered her a small smile, which she returned and dutifully zipped her lip. "I also wanted you to know that…I…hurt too. I missed you horribly and almost turned around and came back several times, but…When we spoke you seemed to be getting along fine without me, so I believed you'd think me an idiot."

Since she couldn't speak, she shook her head.

"All this happening, Daniel, trying to find you, you getting hurt, it was so much like before. I thought I was through with it but…well, it seems I can't be." He lowered his gaze to their hands. "When I think of him leaving you there..." He took a deep breath. "I was so angry, Syd. I was beyond angry that he could even consider..."

Sydney squeezed his hands, assuredly. She understood exactly what he was felt, for she would have felt the same had the situation be reversed. Although it would have been interesting to see a truly angry Nigel Bailey.

Nigel caught sight of Alan coming out of the house, stopping when Derek approached him. "Syd…I can't be as eloquent as I want, I never could be, but I wanted you to know…when I thought I'd lost you…I…I don't want to be without you anymore. I know you're engaged to Alan, but I have to tell you…"

Alan moved away from Derek, and headed towards them.

In a move that was part panic and part optimism he leaned forward and kissed Sydney on the lips, startling her. Even as he released her hands and rose, his mouth close to her ear revealed his final words.

"I love you too, Syd. Give me a chance to prove it."

"Hey there, Nigel." Alan paused by the bench, looking slightly quizzical at having seen the Englishman kissing Sydney; platonic looking though it was, it irked him. "Doesn't my girl look so much better out here in the sunshine?"

Nigel met Sydney's gaze, straight on, could see the shock, the confusion in her eyes. "Beautiful," he agreed, but didn't offer to move on, as he usually did when Alan arrived on scene.

Alan offered Sydney her coffee. "Here you are, love."

Sydney took the mug but did not drink, she was…numb. She couldn't even look Nigel in the eye, or Alan for that matter. Was he serious? Did he love her the way she'd longed for him to? But she loved Alan now, she was engaged to Alan.

"Lloyd said we can head back home tomorrow, Sweetheart. Isn't that great news? You'll still have to wear the cast but doctors back home will have you patched up in no time."

"Actually, I said that you could head home," Derek stated as he joined them. "The Doctor has a specialist he wants Sydney to see in London; make sure that leg heals properly." He settled on the bench next to Sydney and plucked the coffee from her still hands. "That's your neighborhood, right Nigel? Can you see that Syd gets to the specialist tomorrow?"

"Absolutely," Nigel replied. For the first time in his life, he actually wanted to kiss another man.

Alan immediately interceded. "I can bring her, just give me the information and…"

"Sorry." Derek took a sip of Sydney's coffee, and then carefully placed it back in her hands, she hadn't moved or spoken in several minutes and he suspected it had to do with whatever Nigel whispered in her ear; her shock had been evident even from where he had been standing. "That's need to know."

"But if you're giving it to Nigel…"

"He's got clearance, you don't." Derek patted Sydney's shoulder. "There's a helicopter waiting to take you both to the airport."

"Now just a damn minute…!"

"Alan, I'll be fine," Sydney said quietly. "It was very nice of Derek to arrange a specialist."

"But you need me…"

"I need you to head home and take care of things at the University with Karen for when I get back." She lifted her gaze to Nigel, finally. "I need to take care of some things on my own."

Nigel met and held her gaze solemnly, even as his heart raced and he felt like doing cartwheels.

"Oh...well..." Alan floundered. "Okay, I...I guess I'll go get your things together, Syd."

She nodded, but her eyes were still only for Nigel.

"Do...do you want me to bring you back inside?"

"Sit awhile, Syd," Derek suggested as he slapped Nigel on the shoulder. "Enjoy the sunshine. We'll leave you to it."

Sydney again nodded and her eyes moved to the horizon as Alan reluctantly headed into the house.

Derek and Nigel followed.

"Derek...I could kiss you," Nigel confessed as they stepped inside.

"I know, I have that effect on people but it's bad for my image so control yourself."

Nigel grinned, gave Derek a quick, impulsive hug and practically ran to his room.

"Clause..." Derek said as he strolled towards the kitchen. "Derek Clause."


	18. Who Can You Trust?

DISCLAIMER: Please do not copy/reproduce or print any of the below material without the Authors express permission. The characters of RH do not belong to me.

Thanks for all the great comments! See what lots of reviews do for my muses? Already a new chapter for everyone, a nice long one. Hope you enjoy it. And yes…as always I am greedy, so please review!

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN**

Sydney stared out at the horizon and tried to get her thoughts in order. Nigel's confession had literally knocked the wind out of her. When he had come to her room yesterday, he had been so honest and sincere she believed he just wanted to repair their friendship. She never considered…He might want more.

For the first time in her life, Sydney Fox had been rendered speechless and was close to hyperventilating. She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself and figure a few things out. Panicking wouldn't help, she was not one to panic!

She and Nigel had been apart for many years, although her thoughts were always with him, she had finally managed to move on. When he first came to her about the teaching position in England she had been ecstatic for him. It was something he had always wanted and he more than deserved it. Knowing his penchant for modesty and self doubt, she made it her mission to bolster his confidence to accept the job and tried to make it as easy a transition as she could for him.

However, less than a week later, when he was actually tying up lose ends at Trinity and getting things in order for his move back home, it hit Sydney that in a few days, Nigel would be gone.

She'd no longer see him sitting at his desk in the Ancient Studies office, he wouldn't be helping her grade exams, or prepare for class. He wouldn't be there to help her on her hunts, or to share her excitement at a fantastic new find.

She told herself that they would keep in touch, that traveling was no hardship for either of them so they would make the time to get together. Nigel even offered that if she came upon any hunts in England to give him a call and he would take time off to join her.

Plans for Christmas and birthdays, summer holidays and calling/emailing every day very quickly dwindled. At first, Sydney was calling him almost every day, and he her, feeling the need to share the same things they always did. However, the more Sydney heard about how well Nigel was doing, how great his class was and how it was everything he could have hoped for and more, the less Sydney wanted to talk to him.

She would call and tell him about an incredible find, and he would share her enthusiasm, but she could hear the wistfulness in his voice at not being there with her. She wanted to tell him he should be with her, he should never have left, but as his friend she needed to support his new career choice. He sounded so thrilled to be back in England, how could she ruin that?

She missed him terribly, felt as though a giant piece of her was missing and she couldn't seem to fill the hole. She had plenty of candidate's lined up for Nigel's job, but she managed to find fault with every one of them. Not realizing how much she had come to rely on him over the years, she became angry with herself at not remembering to do something that Nigel would normally do for her; that translated to being angry with everyone else around her as well.

Nigel sent her text messages daily for the first six months, sweet things like '_Had urge to jump fr pln…thgt of u' _or _' exhibit 4 Aztec- our scepter on display- well done us __._ At first she saved all his texts and read them when she was having a bad day, then one morning, after a terrible night's sleep, she purged them all from her phone. Angry at him for leaving her, angry at herself for letting him go.

He would still call, but it almost always seemed to be when she couldn't answer her phone, and so she could only listen to his message on her voice mail. Two years ago, he'd sung her happy birthday on her voice mail, she had been in Ecuador on a hunt and hadn't listened to it until two days after her birthday. It had made her cry and she never cried!

Finally, she realized that she couldn't keep torturing herself. She had to move on. Nigel wasn't coming back and she had no right to ask him to. It hurt her every time she missed his calls, and while she still had every email he had sent her since their parting; she couldn't make herself delete them; she'd gotten to the point where reading them only broke her heart more and made her more miserable.

She needed to move on. Nigel had a new life, and she needed one too. Several of her friends were either getting married or having children, and then Karen met Aaron; a man that was eerily similar to Nigel Bailey, and became engaged soon after. Sydney wondered if she wasn't the only one rebounding, but her friend seemed happy and she couldn't put a damper on that happiness.

Convinced she would never find Mr. Right and that she would be alone for the rest of her life, she fell into a deep depression that even Karen could not pull her from. She was apparently so desperate for love that she had begun to consider herself in love with her best friend, who had thwarted that love by taking a job in another country. She quickly reminded herself, however, it was simply that she had come to depend on Nigel, she was used to having him with her as her partner and friend, and any romantic nonsense was just her missing him.

Around that time, Alan started calling and offering to accompany her on her hunts. She knew she was rebounding but she didn't care. It felt good to have a partner again. Alan seemed to be up for renewing their affair and Sydney allowed it. She needed the closeness, the comradeship that Alan afforded her. He was familiar and comfortable, as Nigel had been.

For awhile, she started to feel like her old self again, she started looking forward to the hunts and to spending time with Alan. Then, one day, he'd asked her to marry him and for whatever reason, she'd said yes. She did love him, they'd practically grew up together, and there was an appeal to the idea that she would marry her high school sweetheart.

Her father seemed happy, but as she recalled their conversation, perhaps he wasn't as thrilled as he made out. After all, his first question had been about Nigel.

"_**That's great, Scootchie, Nigel finally popped the question?"**_

"_**What? N…no. No, Nigel's in England, Dad. I'm marrying Alan…"**_

"_**What about Nigel?"**_

"_**I…he…he's in England…"**_

"_**Yes, you said that and I remember him moving there for a job, but I thought you kids kept in touch?"**_

"_**Yes, we…of course, but…Dad, we're just friends!"**_

"_**Oh." Silence. "Well…Alan then… Do I know Alan?"**_

"_**Yes, Dad."**_

"_**Do I like him?"**_

"_**You said you did before."**_

"_**Oh…well, okay. Why don't you and he come up for a visit next month and we'll discuss why he's marrying you and not Nigel."**_

"_**DAD!"**_

_**Randall Fox chuckled. "I've gotta go, Scootchie. See you soon. Love ya."**_

Sydney had been caught off guard by her father's response to the news, and was unsure if he had been teasing her or was seriously surprised that she was not marrying Nigel.

Karen had been happy for her, or at least she seemed to be, and suddenly they were discussing venues and pouring over bridal magazines. She had asked Karen to be her Maid of Honor and Karen had returned the favor, but not before asking if Sydney wouldn't rather have Nigel standing for her.

The idea of asking Nigel to be in her wedding hadn't occurred to Sydney, she had subconsciously removed him from the scenario. She remembered making some comment about how she'd promised never to put Nigel in a dress again, which caused Karen to laugh, and then they moved on to bridesmaids dresses and the subject of Nigel was dropped.

She had meant to tell Nigel she was engaged, she just never seemed to find the time, or the proper way to say it. She'd started emails and texts to him a hundred times but never sent them. She tried calling, but always got his voice mail. If she was honest with herself, she knew that subconsciously she called when he would be in class so she wouldn't have to talk to him.

So, she had moved on with Alan, although she still contacted Nigel now and then, sent an email or text, it was not the same as it had been. She and Alan started talking about retiring, and she considered it. Relic hunting wasn't as much fun as it used to be; without Nigel even teaching seemed diminished somehow. Alan wanted a family and Sydney's biological clock was ticking away, so it made sense to consider time out to have a family. She wasn't getting any younger.

She looked down at her left hand and brooded. She did not wear her engagement ring when on a hunt, she worried it would get lost or stolen, but Alan had brought it with him when he arrived and when she awoke it was on her third finger, shining at her; all two and a half karats. It felt…heavy on her hand, and while she would never admit it, uncomfortable.

Alan was always harassing her about forgetting it, and she insisted that she was used to going jewelry free most of the time, she just had to get used to it. But she wasn't getting used to it. What did that mean? She wanted to marry Alan, of course she did, and everything had been going along perfectly.

Then she met Daniel and the medallion came to them, which brought her to Mexico and to Nigel. Seeing him again filled her with such joy she could hardly breathe. She forgot everything, Daniel, the hunt…even Alan. She never once mentioned Alan or her engagement in the short time they had together. Why hadn't she told him?

She'd felt renewed when she and Daniel headed out to the ruins. Nigel had promised to see her later if he she was back before he left, and she wanted to get the hunt over with quickly so she could go back and see him.

She'd regretted not keeping in touch and allowing her pain and her pride to get in the way of their friendship. No one understood her like Nigel, and even after years apart they fell back into sync as if no time had separated them. She fully intended to be back before his flight out, and perhaps talk him into spending a few extra days in Mexico and seeing the sights. She hadn't wanted to leave him.

She shivered slightly as she recalled the instance in the cave, the instant she knew Daniel had left her, and the moment she thought she was going to die. Then, there he was, just as he had always been, pulling her back from the brink of death; saving her.

_**I've got you, Syd.**_

She would remember those words for the rest of her life. The security she felt, the pure, unadulterated belief in Nigel, and the comfort his touch afforded her. Yes, he had her, and he had promised to never let her go.

Now, here he was, asking for that chance, to be with her always and forever. Could she give it to him? Her mind told her she should be going home with Alan…She was engaged to Alan, and yet…yet there was something…unfinished between her and Nigel that she had to have the chance to explore. Is that what made her say yes to going to England with Nigel?

She sighed and reached for her crutches. Sitting here wasn't helping and Derek said they would be leaving soon, so she'd better get ready. There was much more to….All further thought was thrust from her mind as a horribly painful constriction appeared around her throat abruptly cut off her air supply. Someone from behind! Someone choking her!

She pulled forward and was immediately thrown off balance because of her cast, her assailant came down with her and she managed to twist as she fell and elbow the person in the jaw. The coil around her neck loosened only for a few seconds, but it was enough to throw her head back and connect with her attacker's nose.

She reached for her crutch, even as she felt her breath being forced out of her once again. She managed to grab the crutch, stand it on its arm and then drop it down across her back, or rather her assailants back.

She heard a deep cry of pain and she could breathe again as she felt the pressure easing off her back. She took advantage of the moment by rolling onto her side and thrusting the crutch leg up and behind her, into the body that threatened to over take her again.

She heard the thump behind her of someone falling to the ground, rolled quickly onto her back and brought her injured leg up, catching her assailant, who was rising to their knees, across the face with the side of her cast. The crack of plaster against bone was terrifyingly loud and the person in black dropped like a stone.

Sydney scrambled backwards across the ground, her leg and neck were throbbing in pain, even as she gasped for precious air to force its way through her injured throat.

"Sydney!" Derek called out as he rushed from the house, gun in hand. He'd caught a glimpse of the attack as he passed his bedroom window and had flown down the stairs. "Syd! Are you okay?"

He slid to a halt beside her, keeping his gun trained on the unconscious form a couple of feet from them.

"I…" She nodded, it hurt to talk.

Derek flipped open the small mike at his belt. "I need two agents in the back garden now!" He offered Sydney a hand as she struggled to stand long enough to get back on the bench; while he kept his weapon trained on the assailant.

A mass of people rushed from the house, several agents, Nurse Jean, Alan and Nigel, as Derek moved over to inspect the culprit. He used his foot to roll the person over and then stopped dead in shock.

"That…is that Irene?" Nigel asked in shock, even as she started to stir and two agents hauled her up.

Irene had traded her scrubs for a black spandex suit and hood to hide her hair.

"Why?" Derek demanded, angrily.

She spat something in Latin that Nigel recognized as an oath.

"She's a member of the Gural Nataz."

"That's not possible."

"Why try to kill Sydney now?" Alan demanded as he settled beside his fiancé and put his arm around her, protectively. "You were taking care of her for God's sake?"

"We wanted her alive if possible."

"There were surveillance cameras in the room, she couldn't have made a move without getting caught."

"What?" Sydney croaked. "You were spying on me?"

"All the rooms are set up with cameras and we had to keep an eye on you, especially after we learned the truth about Daniel." He looked at Irene. "You were the one who gave him the gun, weren't you?"

Irene refused to answer, but her lips quirked upwards deliberately.

"Why try and kill us now?" Nigel inquired. "You knew you couldn't get away with it."

"My people were coming tomorrow to get her and the Englishman, but then I heard you were sending them away." She lifted her chin defiantly. "I had orders to terminate."

"I'm getting real tired of your little den of thieves," Derek decided. He was hurt and angry that she had infiltrated his ranks, even more, that he had thought of her as a friend or she would never have been allowed near Nigel and Sydney. "I think it's about time the Gural Nataz came to an end."

"We are everywhere, you cannot end us. We will end you! Death to Sydney Fox!"

"Take her to the Vortex." Derek ordered firmly. "I'll deal with her later."

Sydney watched the woman pale visibly, but remained silent as she was hauled back towards the house. "What's the Vortex?"

"A place where monsters come out," one of the agents muttered as he followed the other two and their prisoner.

"What are you going to do to her, Derek?" Sydney's voice was still painfully husky from her ordeal.

"I'm going to learn what I can from her."

"And if you can't? Are you going to kill her?"

"I'll do what I have to do. For Christ's sake, Sydney, she wanted you dead! She almost accomplished it! What do you care what is done with her?"

"I don't want her death on my hands…."

"She just had her hands on your throat, or did you forget already?"

"Syd…let's not worry about that right now," Alan suggested as he picked up her crutches. "Lloyd will handle it. You need to concentrate on getting better."

Sydney shrugged him off and snatched the crutches from him. The fear and adrenalin she'd experienced earlier was boiling into a healthy dose of fury, as she struggled to rise on the two wooden props. "How the hell did a Gural Nataz agent slip through your precious security, Derek?"

She was angry. Angry at getting caught unaware, angry at not being able to fight back properly, because of her injuries. Angry that Lloyd had them out in the middle of nowhere and was still keeping secrets. Angry that she was so freaking confused now about Nigel and Alan that she was forgetting to go with the flow!

"I don't know, but I intend to find out."

"I bet you do. This is all your fault…"

"That's enough, Sydney."

Nigel's quiet, but firm voice startled the other three into silence.

"Nigel…"she began

"If it weren't for Derek you'd be dead; and so probably would I. You have no right to take out your anger at him when he has put everything on the line to help us. To help you."

"He has an agenda, he always has an agenda. You know that, Nigel!"

"Yes, and you know that I would _never_ trust your life to anyone that I didn't have complete confidence in to keep you safe."

She stared at Nigel and he stared back, their gazes locked in silent communication. Did he really trust Derek? No, she could see that he didn't completely, but nor would he have turned to Derek for help if he thought either of them would get hurt. He wouldn't willingly put them in that position.

She sighed and nodded, allowed her anger to flow away. "I trust you, Nigel."

Derek didn't care that she didn't apologize or add him to her trusted list, if she trusted Nigel's word then the discussion would go no farther. He had to admit, it felt good having the Englishman stand up for him, not many people did; and especially not against Sydney Fox.

Alan bristled but kept silent. What was with Sydney? Hadn't he just basically said the same thing and yet she kept on until the Littlest Professor put his foot down. He understood her friendship with Bailey, but now he was her fiancé and, after all, he had known Sydney far longer than Nigel Bailey.

"Come on back to the house, Professor," Jean offered as she moved to Sydney's side. "I'll whip up something to ease your throat while The Doctor checks you out."

"_You're_ not a Gural Nataz agent, are you?" Sydney asked, only half joking.

"Well, while I'm convinced my head nurse at college may have been a Nazi, the only cult I am involved in is the Ladies Auxiliary Quilting Bee."

Sydney smiled at her and allowed the older woman to assist her back to the house.

"Thank you, Derek," Nigel offered extending his hand.

"That's three you owe me, junior," Derek teased as holstered his weapon and shook Nigel's hand, clapping him on the shoulder with the other hand. "You're running up quite the tab."

"Well, technically, I just saved you from the wrath of Sydney, so I would say we're just about even."

Derek grinned. "Agreed." His smile disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared. "We're moving up the trip so go get whatever you don't want to leave behind and be back here in ten."

Nigel nodded and moved towards the house.

Alan watched him go, he was grateful to Bailey for saving Sydney, but he had never been comfortable with the pair's intimacy. He and Sydney were meant to be together, he always knew it, it was just difficult convincing Sydney.

When she was working with Bailey Alan could see the chemistry between them, and their camaraderie was obvious to anyone. He never thought it possible for anyone to get as close to Sydney as the young scholar had, and God knew he had certainly tried, but she always held something back from him. There was always a part of her that hadn't trusted him and he knew that. And of course, Sydney had always been about her career.

Alan had to admit, Bailey had mellowed Sydney some what, and she was more open and less single-minded about some things, but he assumed that when Bailey left Trinity that innate closeness everyone who knew the pair, and had been so jealous of, had absconded, especially with them living in separate countries. However, it seemed Sydney and her old TA were just as thick as they ever were, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.

He turned to Derek. "So what happens now?"

"Nigel and Sydney head to London to get checked out by the specialist and you head back to wherever you came from."

"You don't like me much do you?"

"I don't like many people…much."

"I only want what's best for Sydney, Lloyd."

"Then we're in agreement, that's all I want too."

"Sydney told me you were not to be trusted."

Derek shrugged and started back to the house.

Alan followed close behind. "Sydney is not interested in you, Lloyd."

"Really? You sure about that?"

"She is marrying me and nothing you do will prevent that."

Derek stopped suddenly and turned so swiftly that Alan almost walked into his nose. "That sounds like a challenge and you know, I do love a challenge."

Alan stepped back only slightly, then stood his ground. "I'm not afraid of you, Lloyd, so let me be clear, if you hurt Sydney I will hunt you down and make you pay."

"A challenge and a threat?" Derek smirked. "Obviously Sydney didn't tell you everything about me." The humor in his face was instantly replaced with that of a dedicated but ruthless agent. "That leads me to believe that either she still feels something for me, or she doesn't feel enough for you."

Alan balked, angrily, but Derek continued.

"Now let _me_ be clear. I can turn your entire world upside down, destroy your way of life so that even your family won't trust you." He lifted his finger. "So be very careful who you throw your posture at, because I can make you disappear, Alan, and no one would come looking for you, not even Sydney Fox."

Something in Derek's eyes, and in the way he chose not to deny Sydney's earlier accusations about how he would extrapolate information from the Gural Nataz agent warned him that Lloyd was not threatening, he was stating a fact. And that alone gave Alan the sense to back down.

"I won't let you come between us," he promised as a final wave of bravado.

"If it's true love, nothing could come between you," Derek stated as he turned and started walking again. As a parting shot he tossed back, "Besides, it's not me you need to worry about, surf boy."

Alan scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. What the hell did that mean? Wasn't Lloyd hoping to break up his and Sydney's engagement to make way for himself? Surely he wasn't talking about Bailey? The quiet Englishman was hardly Sydney's type and besides, they had always maintained their relationship was strictly platonic.

He was grateful to Bailey for saving Sydney, but he had never been comfortable with the pair's intimacy. He and Sydney were meant to be together, he always knew it, it was just difficult convincing Sydney.

When she was working with Bailey, Alan could see the chemistry between them, and their camaraderie was obvious to everyone. He never thought it possible for anyone to get as close to Sydney as the young scholar had, and God knew he had certainly tried, but she always held something back from him. There was always a part of her that hadn't trusted him and he knew that. And of course, Sydney had always been all about her career.

Alan had to admit, Bailey had mellowed Sydney some what, and she was more open and less single-minded about some things, but he assumed that when Bailey left Trinity that innate closeness everyone that knew Sydney had been so jealous of had absconded, especially with them living in separate countries. However, it seemed Sydney and her old TA were just as thick as they ever were, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.

Still, to even consider Bailey as a rival for Sydney's affections? While he liked Bailey well enough, the younger man was far too submissive and weedy to interest a woman like Sydney, at least romantically. Anyone with a brain could see Sydney wore the pants in that relationship and she would never be happy with a man she didn't feel was her equal.

Sydney needed someone that could match and compliment her intelligence, strength and passion for life. Bailey had it in the brains department, and Alan supposed the Englishman's humble and sometimes vulnerable demeanor could appeal to some women, but certainly not a woman like Sydney Fox.

No, Nigel Bailey was no threat. Lloyd was just trying to get him worked up. Alan pushed it to the back of his mind and headed into the house.


	19. Feelings & Familiarity

DISCLAIMER: Relic Hunter does not belong to me, I am simply borrowing them for a little while for the amusement of others and for my own personal safety (You know who you are) to avoid possibly pummeling or catastrophic kissing injury (yes, still talking about you :) )Please do not reproduce/copy/print any part of this story without permission. Please, please review. I have two endings already written and need your comments to decide which one to use. ;) Sorry for the delay.

**CHAPTER NINETEEN**

Nigel opened the door leading to his upstairs flat as he and Sydney stepped inside. They both looked at the stairs, then at her cast. "Right then." He bent to scoop her into his arms.

"Nigel! You're going to hurt yourself!"

"P…Probably," he agreed as he started up the stairs. It wasn't that Sydney weighed too much, they were very close to the same weight, but he'd never been overly strong to begin with and he was still recovering from being shot. "Almost there." He set her at the top of the stairs that led to his living room and kitchen. "Didn't think of the stairs when I suggested staying here."

"It's fine," Sydney assured as she hopped inside and dropped down on a small leather sofa while Nigel returned downstairs to the vestibule for her crutches and their bags.

. She took a quick look around. Standard English apartment, fair sized living room and a surprisingly modern kitchen, another set of stairs that must lead to the bathroom and bedrooms.

Nigel reappeared, set their bags by the door and her crutches close to the arm of the sofa, and then shrugged off his jacket. It was good to be home. "Would you like something to drink?"

"Please."

He peered into his refrigerator and grimaced. He'd have to run to the shop for food, but at least there was beer. He grabbed two bottles, popped them open and then reached into a cupboard above the stove for a rolled up bag of chips.

"Afraid I can't offer you much," he said as he gave her the beer, set the bag on the coffee table, and then settled beside her. "We can order something in if you're hungry, just until I can get some proper groceries."

Sydney accepted the beer and watched as he carefully lifted her injured leg and placed it atop a sofa pillow on the table. They had been separated for years and yet his instinct to know exactly what she needed, to take care of her, had not diminished.

"Nigel," she began. "We should talk…"

"We should," he agreed, set his beer on the table and rose. "But not an empty stomach." He walked over to a large writing desk and opened the top drawer. "What's you're fancy, then?" He pulled out a handful of takeout menus. "They have good take-a-way here, excellent Thai and Chinese."

"How about chicken?" she asked, knowing she would get nothing out of him until he had his way.

"Chicken? Excellent choice. I'll order a family meal, extra fries for you, if I remember?"

She smiled and nodded. Of course he remembered. He rarely forgot anything. She listened to him order the food, then he hung up the phone and return to the sofa. He picked up his beer and the television remote. "Fancy a movie? Must be something on…"

Sydney gently pulled the remote away from him and switched the large screen off. "I don't want to watch a movie. I want to talk."

Nigel's shoulders slumped as he held onto his drink with two hands and stared at it. "There's nothing to say."

She stared at him. "Nigel, you…you practically declared your love for me at Derek's. You asked me to give you a chance and to not marry Alan. I think there are a few things to say."

He shook his head. "I've said what I needed to, if you want to say something that's fine."

Did she? What could she say? She could tell him that he was being dramatic and that he didn't really feel what he thought for her. That it was just the close call in the cave and the emotional upheaval and the fact that they had been away from each other for so long. He was jealous of Alan, he always was jealous of her boyfriends and she had known it, but that was just because they were friends and he didn't want things to change.

She had a million reasons why he said what he said and a million 'talks' she should have with him, yet as he looked at her, convinced that he had nothing more to say, but not backing down from what he confessed, she was bewildered and confused.

"Nigel…Are you in love with me?"

"Syd…" He rose suddenly, shoved his hands in his pockets and moved to stare out his window. He had a pretty good view of the river and the park from here; which was one of the reasons he'd rented this flat. "I'm not sure if what I'm feeling is…love or relief, because of what happened or…or just that I've missed you so much."

He turned back, leaned against the wall met her gaze. "I do know that this…whatever this is, is stronger than any other feeling I have ever had for…for you or for anyone."

Sydney tilted her head and met his gaze, she felt exactly the same way, but she wasn't ready to admit to it.

He moved back and settled beside her, obviously agitated in the movement of his hands, yet determined to see their discussion through. "It...we've always been close, you and I, haven't we?"

She nodded.

"I've adored…having it with you, that…that closeness."

"Likewise," she offered sincerely.

"This past week, so much has happened and for a moment there was the idea, the monumentally horrific idea that I might…." He paused as his voice cracked from emotion. Even now he could not rid himself of that terrible moment of seeing her bloodied and broken on the cave floor.

Sydney reached over and touched his knee in support, understanding his relived fear completely.

"I…" He cleared his throat, tentatively covered her hand with his. "I thought I might actually lose you and it…well it scared the devil out of me."

She nodded, for she had felt the same when she had been in that pit, afraid she would never see Nigel again.

"Whatever this is...this new feeling…"Or perhaps it was an old feeling and it was just buried too deep to notice…"I think we should give it a shot… I mean really consider what…what it means to…to both of us. For both of us, if you feel the same?"

Sydney had no answers. She still wasn't sure about herself or her feelings. She understood his confusion, his need for finding some solid base for what he was feeling, she was in the same predicament. And yet, she was marrying Allan, she gave her promise to Allan.

"I love you." He caught her chin as she lowered her eyes and gently lifted her gaze to his. "I love you, Syd. It's just that plain."

"Oh Nigel, I…" Sydney stared at him. "Nigel, I…I'm marrying Alan, and…"

"You're not married yet." He caught both her hands in his. "I know I have no right to ask you this, I know it's a rotten thing to drop on you when you've already said you'll marry another, but …please. Give me one week, just this one week and we can forget about relic hunting, and Allan and Derek and school and our work and just spend time together. Let's just see if…if we can make anything of what we have?"

"That isn't being fair to Alan…"

"I know, but it wasn't fair to me to not tell me how much my leaving hurt you, either."

Sydney lowered her eyes. "Karen shouldn't have told you that."

"Was it untrue? Did you not pull away and distance yourself from me because you missed me so much? Because you had feelings for me that you weren't aware of until I was gone?"

"Nigel, it…it isn't that simple…"

"Nothing we do is simple, Syd."

She smirked. "This is a different kind of complication."

"Yes, and we have to do what we have always done, work through it together."

"Nigel…I…" Part of her wanted to throw herself into his arms, but then she remembered how horrid she felt when he'd left; how betrayed.

Granted she had pushed him to go but she had been trying to be supportive, she never actually expected him to leave her, dissolve their partnership. He hurt her, and as much as she cared for him, missed him, she couldn't seem to let that go. And of course, there was Allan.

"I just don't know," she admitted and hated herself for it; hated not being able to give him an answer.

"That's okay, Syd. It's okay because I'm not sure either but we have to be sure, we have to try."

Sydney stared at their joined hands. She had always liked Nigel's hands, so soft and pale, but strong too. They made her feel safe. But was it enough?

Sleep on it?" he suggested just as his door ringer downstairs announced the arrival of their food. "We'll go see the specialist tomorrow, and then…well…we'll go from there."

She nodded and brooded as he disappeared down stairs. She didn't want to hurt him, and she was trying to get past the hurt he had caused her. He was right, she should have asked him to stay, she should have told him how much she missed him.

Her stupid pride wouldn't allow it, and besides he was her friend. She couldn't ruin his opportunity. Oh who was she kidding, she didn't tell him because she didn't want anyone to know she needed them, she refused to be that dependant on someone. It was weak to need someone that much. She prided herself on being reliant and having no need of a man.

Nigel returned with their chicken and promptly went to work putting it on plates and gathering utensils.

Sydney watched him and felt her heart break. She didn't deserve him. She'd never be able to keep him, that was certain. He'd get tired of her demanding ways and need for independence. He'd get bored by her running off to find relics all the time or spending too much time with her students.

Just like every other man, and then she would lose him completely, just like every other man. Or worse, he'd become like some of her past beaus and think he could get a little every time he was in town.

Nigel headed towards the sofa with a plate in each hand, just as Sydney rose and reached for her crutches. "Where are you going?"

"I'm tired," she lied. "I want to go to bed."

"Don't you want to eat something first?"

She shook her head. She wanted to leave the room before she broke down and considered his offer. She didn't want him to be nice to her, or fetch her food or anything else that she found endearing.

He immediately set the plates down on the coffee table. "There's a room here in the corner," he advised as he moved to a door just off the living room. "I mostly use it as an office, but it will be easier than you having to go up and down the stairs."

She leaned on her crutches and paused at the door as Nigel switched on the wall lamp.. Wasn't much bigger than her walk-in closet, but there was small daybed and a neatly organized desk. "This will be fine."

"Um…let me just get some sheets to make it up, I don't usually have guests."

"Then why do you have the daybed?"

"It came with the flat."

He disappeared from view and she moved inside. There was a bare surface on the top, no doubt where his laptop usually went, a cup holder with several pens and pencils and his small union jack flag. A printer off to the side, along with two small computer speakers.

On the higher shelf were extra packages of paper, file folders and assorted office supplies. Above the desk were several long wall shelves covered with books. And on the very top portion of the desk, just before the bookshelves, was an 8 x 10 picture of he and Sydney from years ago. Laughing and holding up one of their relics; no doubt taken at the Ancient Studies office.

God, was it really almost six years ago when they had last worked together? Where had the time gone? Why hadn't she hired another assistant until Daniel? Daniel…that was a big mistake. She'd been so sure of him, so confident. Couldn't she trust her own instincts anymore? She should have known something was off. She never should have gone into that cavern, never should have ignored her gut feeling.

She dropped down on the bed as if suddenly deflated. She never should have survived. She should have died there, because she was arrogant and trusting and…

"Here we are," he announced, moving in, pulling the comforter off the day bed and setting to work applying fresh sheets. "It's actually quite comfortable, I've fallen asleep on in a few times when I was too tired to make the trip upstairs." He turned and found Sydney staring off into space. "Syd?"

She started and turned her attention back to him. "Thanks."

"You can sleep in this, if you like." He held up a long X-Files T-shirt. "I won it at some fair a few years back, was always far too large, but should make a good night shirt for you."

She lowered hr eyes as her fingers curled hard enough for the nails to dig into her palms. "Okay."

"Syd?" he asked sitting beside her. "I never mean to pressure you."

"I know. You haven't."

"I don't want you to be upset."

"I'm not."

"You are, and there's no point denying it." He patted her shoulder affectionately. "If you need me, just whistle, okay?"

She nodded as he rose.

"Do you need help changing?"

She shook her head, her lower lip had started to tremble and she bit it. Just go, she wanted to scream. Go before I lose it completely!

He paused, then suddenly crouched before her and found her gaze, saw the tears welling up in her eyes, her hands fisted on the bed as she fought for control. "God, Sydney." He sat down on the bed and pulled her into his arms. "I'm so sorry."

The damn broke. The tears came in a flood that refused to be stopped. Hot, hurtful sobs wrenched from somewhere deep inside of her as she clung to Nigel. She wanted to tell him it wasn't his confession or his request, it was everything. Everything that had happened suddenly just overwhelmed her and she couldn't hold it back She couldn't be strong anymore.

Nigel didn't offer any false platitudes, he just held her, rubbed her back and lightly rocked her until the sobbing subsided.

"I'm sorry," she managed and she almost laughed as he produced a clean handkerchief from his pocket. The laugh came out as another sob. "I…It's not you it's…" She wiped her eyes and blew her nose, tried to clear her throat enough to speak. "I almost died," she whispered.

"Yes, you almost did." He caught a fresh tear with his thumb as he gently pushed her hair back from her face. "But you're here, Syd. You're okay."

She sighed and leaned against him again. "I feel rotten."

"You won't always."

She lifted her watery gaze to him, searching for signs of triumph or amusement for her plight, as she had often seen in the eyes of other man she had cried before, and the list was extremely short. Instead, she saw her devastation mirrored in his eyes. He may not be shedding the tears but he was crying with her. That knowledge added to her grief, yet caused a tremor in her heart unlike any she had ever felt.

After several long minutes of just holding and rocking, Nigel spoke.

"You know what we need?"

"A psychiatric evaluation?"

"And chicken," he decided and pulled away to smile at her. "You always feel better when you've eaten." He rose and held out his hands to her. "Come on. No more talk of feelings or gloom and doom or what ifs, let's just eat and watch some tele and if you are very good, I shall make you a ham and cheese omelet in the morning for breakfast."

She grinned and blew her nose again. She had missed his omelets. "You said you didn't have any groceries."

He helped her to her feet and smiled. "Let me worry about the details." He winked. "Isn't that what you used to pay me for?"

She laughed and felt such an incredible release she almost fainted. Why had she ever doubted him, or their friendship? "As I recall, I owed you a raise."

She leaned on him, rather than use her crutches as they returned to the living room and he nodded. "I never have been good at collecting debts." He carefully deposited her on the sofa, kissed the top of her head and grabbed their plates. "I'll just warm this up, then."

Sydney leaned forward to reach for the remote and then spotted his selection of Blu-Rays. She carefully rose and hopped over to the stack. "How do you feel about action?"

"I've had enough of _that_ lately, thank you very much!"

She grinned again. "Romantic Comedy?" she asked and selected Friends With Benefits, then shook her head and put it back. Better not to tempt fate. "Thriller?"

"Oy! Do you still watch the Harry Potters?"

"Yes, I saw all but the last three."

"I'll fill you in on the Half Blood Prince then and the last movie is there, both parts. I haven't watched them yet either."

Sydney pulled out the Deathly Hollows, Part 1. "Awesome!" She popped it into the player and hopped back to the sofa just as Nigel returned with their food. "Just like old times," she teased, and then remembered that they never really sat at home together and watched movies. They took in a film at the theatre on occasion when they weren't working, but those times were rare.

He settled beside her and picked up his beer. "Or, new times," he offered, reading her mind and clinked her bottle. "I've missed you, Syd."

"I've missed you, Nigel." She settled back and bit into her chicken. "Now, what happened in the last one?"

"Well, Dumbledore found another Horcux and Harry…."


	20. Sincerety & Second Chances

_**DISCLAIMER: Relic Hunter does not belong to me, I am simply borrowing them for a little while. Please do not reproduce/copy/print any part of this story without permission. Please, please review !**_

CHAPTER TWENTY

"Everything looks good," Dr. Harum concurred as he examined the X-rays of her injured leg. I think that cast can come off next week, but I would advise against any marathons or mountain climbing for at least another month."

Sydney smiled. "I'll do my best."

"You are in excellent health, Ms. Fox, aside from your recent injuries which appear to be healing nicely." Dr. Harum set her X-ray on his desk then turned to smile at her. "You're free to head home, your family doctor can remove the cast. You're from America aren't you?"

"Yes."

"I've never been there, but if they have women as beautiful as you," he added with a wink. "And as healthy, I may have to make a trip, and soon." He handed her the crutches she was currently using and waited until she was standing and secure. "Do you have someone to help you?"

Sydney thought of Nigel, no doubt waiting patiently in the lobby and smiled. "Yes. Yes, I have someone."

She headed out of the examination room and down the long, gray corridor lit by florescent lights. The physician had given her the go ahead to go home, but was she ready to?

Last night, Nigel had put all his cards on the table, something that was very unusual for him. He almost always played things close to the vest when it came to his feelings. Oh, his outward attraction towards women was obvious enough, as was his fear or anxiety in certain situations. But for the hard core feelings, the really important ones, she had never been able to tell where he stood, until now.

It had taken great courage to basically hand his heart to her the way he did, and she had been too overwhelmed and blinded by fear to respond in a way that he deserved. Everything had seemed to cumulate at that moment, Nigel's leaving, Alan, Daniel, her ordeal in the caves and she had broken for a brief moment.

Nigel was there, just as he had been for so many years and she was so beyond moved by that knowledge that she did what she had promised not to do, she leaned on him; took what he was offering and allowed herself to appear vulnerable.

She had tossed and turned that night, despite their enjoyment of the movies and had gotten hardly a wink of sleep, worrying of how to proceed. In the morning, Nigel had his special omelet, toast and coffee waiting for her, which took the sting out of her restless night. He always kept his promises.

In the end, she had to admit that she'd considered a relationship with Nigel intermittently during their years together, but never once actually thought it would, or could happen.

He was her best friend and partner. He knew her as no one else could and had proven that last night. He'd given her what she needed, a shoulder to cry on and someone to hold. He hadn't made light of her despair, hadn't offered false platitudes or scolded her for allowing herself to get into such a situation. Most importantly, he hadn't taken advantage of her moment of weakness and tried to get her into bed.

It is better to have loved and lost then never to have loved at all. Well, Sydney had certainly loved in the past, but she had never felt the connection with anyone as she did with Nigel. Alan was the only other person that came close. She knew she loved Alan, a part of her had always and would always love him, but was it truly love she felt for Nigel?

Was it genuine, consummate love with a capital L, true and passionate, or was it just that she was comfortable with him, safe, and even sometimes dependant on him? He would never let her down. He would always be there for her. Was she mistaking reliance for love? Friendship for passion? Comfort for a desire to commit?

Her biological clock was not only ticking it was thundering, and now, after years of bad relationships, she had two men who were offering her their heart for the rest of their lives. Could she risk her heart, knowing her track record with men, and risk losing Nigel all together if it didn't work out? Shouldn't she just forget the whole thing and return to Alan, a man who had always loved her, even if they hadn't always agreed on everything?

God! Why did things have to be so complicated? She had to know. She had to know if and what anything could come of her and Nigel's relationship.

An orderly held open the doors to the waiting room for her and she stepped through. Nigel, of course, was waiting and looked deep in thought before he noticed her and immediately rose.

"Well…how did it go?" he asked as he stepped up to her.

"I'll never play the violin again," she returned.

"That's a shame," he admitted as he took her satchel and tossed it over his shoulder so she could maneuver better. "But the neighbors should be relieved."

She tried to swat at him, over balanced herself and he caught her arm to steady her.

"Easy there, hop along, let's not get a matching cast on the rest of you."

She grinned then, as they stepped outside the clinic and into the overcast weather of England. "I can make weapons out of these, you know?"

"Of course you can." He indicated they cross at the light and quickly changed the subject. "Hungry?"

"Famished!"

"Indian or seafood?"

"Oohh…" She eyed a small pub on the corner. "Fish and chips would hit the spot."

"Let's go then."

They found a small booth by the window and Nigel held her crutches as she slid into it.

"So," he asked as he took his place opposite her. "What is the prognosis? Besides the violin disappointment?"

"Doctor says my leg is healing very well and the cast can come off in a week."

"Well, that's good news." He paused as the waitress stopped by the table to take their order. "Two chippers please and I'll have a pint of Boddy." He looked at Sydney. "Red wine?"

Damn, he knew her so well, almost too well. "I think I'll try the beer." she decided, not willing to let him think he knew all her tastes.

The waitress nodded and headed off.

"So, one more week." Nigel played with his small paper coaster. "What about your arm?"

"That's fine, it doesn't even hurt anymore." She paused. "In fact the doctor says I can go home any time now."

Nigel nodded, but remained silent, the disappointment was written all over his face. He wished he had something else to do with his hands. They had not discussed his pathetic confession last night, and he was still not sure where he stood with her on that.

Sydney seemed content to pretend it didn't happen, which was her usual fare whenever they came close to being intimate, but now he wondered if she might not be the more sensible of them.

"When do you go back to work?" Sydney asked as their drinks arrived.

"I took some time," he advised. Was she itching to leave, now that the doctor had cleared her? "I have plenty saved up and they are good about letting me off whenever I need it."

Sydney nodded and sipped her beer. "Not like me," she teased. "You didn't get to many vacations when you were working for me."

For her? He sometimes forgot that she had, technically, been his employer. Would that ruin his chances of a more intimate relationship then? Could Derek have gotten his signals crossed? God knew he had, several times, while he worked with her. He paused and picked up his drink. _For_ her, he worked for her. But he didn't work for her now, did he?

Sydney had expected some sarcastic clip from Nigel, and was concerned by his sudden brooding. Hurt had flickered across his face for a millisecond, but knowing him as she did, she still caught it. "Nigel?"

"Did I tell you I received an e-mail from Claudia?" he avoided, setting his beer down before he swallowed the whole thing from nerves. He needed to be sober when dealing with Sydney. God knew what a mess he would make of things if he allowed himself to get trolleyed. "It was from when we were…away…"

Sydney let him change the subject. "What's she up to?"

"Oh, the usual. She loves her job in New York and spends most of her day shopping." He grinned slightly as he thought of her. He never imagined he would miss that bubble-headed blond, but after all, she truly was like a sister to him. "I'm surprised there is a store left after her being there for so long."

"Well, at least she's happy."

"She seems to be."

"Still no Mr. Right?"

Nigel smirked and reached for his beer again. "Well…Mr. Right-Now- is an architect with a well known construction firm there. She met him I think three months ago."

"Wow!" That practically made them engaged in Claudia's world. "Now, what happened to the drummer, Clint, or Clive…"

"Cleaver." Nigel waved his hand at her. "He is so last year, Syd. I think he ran off with a flight attendant."

"And what about Byron?"

"Byron…Byron…" Claudia had so many boyfriends it was hard to keep track. "The Scottish Lord," Sydney reminded. "She seemed pretty happy with him."

"Ah, yes…she found out he didn't belong to the country club, he worked there, as a caddy."

Sydney winced. "Ouch. And the dancer before that?"

"God knows, probably ran off with a chorus girl."

Sydney laughed. "Well, maybe this time she has found someone who'll stick. Three months is practically forever for Claudia."

"Indeed." Their food arrived and the conversation paused as they received their plates. The waitress made a blatant attempt to flirt with Nigel by reaching across him for the vinegar, giving him a good view of her cleavage, then offering the bottle to him. "Thank you," he responded but kept his eyes on his meal and didn't flush once.

The waitress wandered off disappointed and Sydney smirked. She wondered if Nigel knew how many broken hearts followed him. She reached for the salt then passed it to Nigel, who offered her the vinegar in trade, after adding some to his meal.

"So..." Sydney popped a fry in her mouth. "What's the plan?"

He glanced up at her from where he had just taken a bite of fish. "Plan?"

"You have me here for a week," she reminded trying not to think of how much she missed his fringe of bangs. He wore his hair shorter on the top now, slightly spiked with gel. "What do you plan to do with me?"

He flushed and almost dropped his fork. "I…You…you're staying?"

"I promised you a week, Nigel, and I always keep my promises."

He stared at her, a dozen different emotions flickering across his face. Now what should he do? She was willing to stay, but was she willing to give him a chance? Could he compete with Alan and all her other men? Could he make her see him as someone other than a friend and partner?

He set his napkin on the table, rose and slid in next to her, barely giving her time to make room for him. "Syd…"

Sydney's temperature rose about thirty degrees when she watched him suddenly rise and then settle beside her. Was he going to kiss her again? Confess something else? Kiss her again? God…he smelled incredible!

He reached for her hand when she moved it under the table and touched his forehead to hers. "Sydney, this is…difficult. Not because I don't want it but…because I do."

Sydney closed her eyes, squeezed her hand and opened herself to the possibilities his next words might offer. "I'm listening, Nigel."

She _was_ giving him a chance! "Syd…" He gathered his courage and pulled back. Not looking her in the eye was the coward's way. "I…" He sighed in silent frustration. It was so hard for him to voice his feelings, after so many years of hiding them. "Sydney, I…I'm not sure," he admitted quietly.

Sydney wasn't sure either what she was feeling, but he was right. They both deserved the chance to uncover the truth. "I know."

"So…so really…" He started. "You feel…something else…um…too?"

She nodded.

"Oh…OH! Well…I…" He laughed nervously. "I…really haven't the foggiest idea what to do next. When I asked you for a week I…I was desperate, but I never expected…"

She slid her free hand over both of theirs. "Well…let's just take it a bit at a time then. See what happens?"

He nodded. "Yes. Yes, that's sensible. Of course, we can…" He leaned forward, tentatively asking permission. "Date?"

"Within reason," she agreed. "After all, I'm still engaged and it wouldn't be fair to Alan."

"No…no I suppose not. But then, none of this is really fair to him, is it?"

She shook her head.

"It isn't that I don't like Alan, either, Syd. He's a fine fellow and…well good for you really. I know you've always had deep feelings for him."

"So…you're willing to forget all of this and let me fly back into his arms?"

"NO!" he admitted quickly. "I mean…liking the fellow and…and blessing a marriage to him is…well that's a different thing altogether."

Sydney hid a smile and nodded. "Yes. It is." She suddenly threw her arms around his neck. "Promise me something?"

"Anything."

"If this…thing with us is just nerves or fear from the past few days, or even if it isn't…" She kept her arms around him but pulled back enough to look him in the eye. "Promise me that nothing will change? The important things I mean."

He nodded. "Of course, Syd."

He stared into her eyes and wanted, at that moment to kiss her so badly it hurt, but he had to respect her wishes. She was engaged to Alan, so physical contact had to be kept at a minimum until the figured out whatever this new thing was between them. He felt a quick sense of guilt, but shrugged it away. He deserved a chance as much as Alan did. He just had to remind himself that Sydney was worth any obstacle.

"So…"

"So…" She smiled at him, she couldn't help it, he was so damn adorable when flustered. "Maybe we should finish our meal?"

"What? Oh!" He quickly rose and moved to the other side of the booth. "Yes, yes, of course. It's getting cold isn't it?" He grabbed up his fork and with, perhaps a little too much relish, dug into his food. "Mmm, yes, food."

Sydney bit her lip to keep from laughing aloud. She would call Alan, let him know why she was staying in London. It was only fair if she was having second thoughts and somehow, she believed he would understand.


	21. Confusion and Confrontation

_**DISCLAIMER: Wow…at 21 chapters already and still going strong…I think I should probably end this soon, huh? Relic Hunter does not belong to me, blah, blah, blah, you know the story. My fingers are numb from this chapter as the scene kinda ran away from me…It was building,g and over flowed once I started writing…plus those guys just wouldn't shut up! Enjoy and as always review, review, review! **_

**CHAPTER TWENTY ONE**

Alan was _not_ understanding, in fact he flipped on Sydney and demanded to speak to Nigel.

"What for?" she insisted, also upset. "Alan, I haven't made any decisions I just need to see…"

"You have made a decision! You've decided to run away again, just like before…"

"I haven't! God, please understand, this isn't about you and me it's about me…"

"And Nigel frigging Bailey!"

"No, not…" Sydney ran a hand through her hair and pulled a candy out of the small bowl that Nigel had placed on the desk in his office. It was her favorite kind, the kind that she used to have in her office, before he left. Her secret stash; and here he was, providing her with it once again.

"Sydney? Hello?"

Sydney popped the candy in her mouth, slightly annoyed that Alan pulled her away from her happy thought. "I didn't have to tell you," she snapped. "I could have lied about it, but I have always tried to be honest with you." She sat on the bed. "Oh, Alan, please understand. I have to do this. I have to be sure."

"You were sure enough to accept my proposal, before that damn tea-totaler came back into the picture!"

"He saved my life!"

"So you owe him yours?" Alan growled in frustration and tried to calm himself. "Sydney, please. Be reasonable. You've been through a lot lately so maybe now is not the time to be making these kinds of decisions. You should have come home with me and we could have talked about this."

Sydney bristled. "Alan, I don't need you to approve my choices."

"If we're going to be married we need to make choices together! God, how can you not understand that?"

"So now I'm stupid?"

"Damn it, Sydney, you always do this! You always make me sound like I'm attacking your way of life and that isn't what I'm doing. I love you. I've never stopped loving you, but you are the most stubborn, exasperating, and pig-headed…"

"Flattery will get you no where," Sydney mocked, even as she felt some of her anger ease.

Alan half sighed and half laughed into the phone. "What am I supposed to do while you're up there painting the town with baby-face then?"

"Stop calling him names and we won't be painting the town. Alan, I just need some time and I have doubts, you don't want me to marry you with doubts do you?"

"At this point I'd be fine with that."

Sydney smiled. "You wouldn't. Please let me do this. It may turn out to be nothing."

"It is nothing! Sydney, sweetheart, you've been under a lot of stress lately and I know you've missed your little sidekick…"

Sydney bristled. "Don't call him that!"

"I'm sorry, I am…Look I like Nigel. He was very good for you, he was there for you in…in ways that I couldn't be and I respect him for that. But staying there will only make it worse when you have to leave again." Alan's voice softened. "Sweetheart, can't you see what this really is? You've had a bad scare, you almost died…"

"I'm aware of that Alan."

"The point is that after such a traumatic situation lots of people have doubts or think they have to reevaluate your life. But, Sydney, you aren't one of those people. You accept things as they and you always know where you stand. You've never been afraid of the future or doubted your role in it."

"Alan…that isn't what this is about…"

"Of course it is! You went through a bout of depression when Nigel left, and I get that, I do. You and he were very close for many years and you depended on each other. You were used to each other."

"Yes, of course, but…"

"Sweetheart, can't you see that this is just your regret at things not being the way they were? Can't you see that you just need some reliability after your scare and Nigel is, without a doubt, the most reliable relationship you ever had? It's natural to want it back."

Sydney bit her lip and stared at the framed photo of her and Nigel on his desk. Could what Alan was saying be true? She certainly did think about Nigel a lot and would jump at the chance for things to be the way they were between them.

"Sydney?"

"I'm here." She ran a hand through her hair. "He's asked me to stay and I owe him that. It's only for one week."

Look, I don't know what you think is going to happen here, but let's be honest. You two were together…what…almost a decade? Nothing ever happened between the two of you, did it? Your relationship with him has always remained platonic and there is absolutely no reason to think it has changed."

If she were honest, Sydney would have to admit that there had been enormous chemistry between her and Nigel, even when they worked together, and that there had been a couple of times…But Alan was right. If Nigel had felt that way about her, wouldn't she have seen something of it? Oh, a look here and there didn't mean anything, they were attracted to each other, naturally, but attraction did not constitute love.

"Sydney, he left. If he felt anything like that for you, why would he have taken that position in England and leave you behind?"

"It was the opportunity of a lifetime Alan!" she defended quickly, and tried to ignore the added doubts his words conjured. "I couldn't have asked him to give that up and…and besides that. Plenty of people give up love for their career." She paused. "You did."

Alan was silent for a long moment. "As did you," he reminded quietly.

"True, so you can't use that excuse."

"Sweetheart, come home. You ran your course with Nigel, now it's time to move on, to the life you should have had to begin with."

"Don't tell me who I can be friends with, Alan!"

"I'm not saying that!"

"You are. Nigel and are…are…." God! How could she even describe what Nigel meant to her? "You can't just expect me to turn him out of my life!"

"I'm not saying you should, but damn it, Sydney, you haven't really talked to him in over a year. This whole situation's got you both worked up and now you're both seeing things that aren't there!"

"I need time, Alan. Whether it is imagination or stress or whatever, I need time."

"You're running away again, Sydney. Just like you did the last time."

"I'm not!"

"Then come home!"

Sydney felt tears prickle her eyes and blinked furiously to keep them at bay. "No."

They sat in silence on the phone. Finally, Alan spoke.

"I miss you," he whispered and the words broke Sydney's heart.

"I know.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

There was a long pause between them.

"I still want to talk to Bailey."

"No."

"Fine, I'll hang up and call back 'till he answers."

"Why do you have to talk to him?"

"I think I'm entitled to speak to the man who is trying ruin our life together!"

"He isn't doing that. He likes you, Alan…."

"Bully for him, now put him on the damn phone, Sydney, or I swear that I will fly up there and break the door down to see him."

Sydney closed her eyes and massaged her temples. She was getting a horrible headache. "It's late here, Alan, he's in bed…"

"Wake him up, and you better not be rolling over to do it!"

"Alan! He's upstairs in his _own_ bed!"

"Get him up."

Sydney growled and carefully stood up. She dropped the phone in her robe pocket, grabbed her crutches and tossed open the door. She got to the stairs, braced the crutches against the wall and carefully hopped up the stairs, cursing all the way.

There was no door to Nigel's room. Once you were at the top of the stairs you were in his room, a large open area with a king sized bed, two dressers and a door off in the corner that led to the bathroom. Nigel lay in bed, the covers at his waist, shirtless and sound asleep.

Sydney sighed, she really didn't want to wake him, but she knew that Alan would fly out if she didn't, he was just that obstinate.

She tried to ease herself onto the bed. "Nigel?" she said softly and touched his arm.

Nigel stirred, opened his eyes for a millisecond, then he rolled over to the right side of the bed. "Cold again?" he murmured as his hand flicked back the covers on the left side, even as he drifted back to sleep.

Sydney flushed all the way to her toes. Was he dreaming or was he remembering the couple of times she had crawled into his bed because it had been freezing in her room?

"Nigel!" she said sharply.

"Huh?" He was immediately alert, some things never changed. "What's wrong?"

Sydney pulled the phone out of her pocket. "I'm sorry to wake you, but I called Alan to tell him I'd be staying." She grimaced. "He wants to talk to you."

"Me!" Nigel squeaked. This couldn't be good. "Why does he want to talk to me?"

She shrugged. "He says he'll just keep calling back until he talks to you."

Nigel flopped back on the bed and groaned. Why him? He didn't want to talk to her bloody fiancé! He glanced at the clock. "It's the middle of the night!"

"Please, Nigel."

"The things I do for you," he growled as he sat up.

Sydney settled on the bed so she could brace herself against the headboard and pull her legs up. Ah, relief. She spoke into the phone to Alan. "If you're mean or threatening I'm hanging up, Alan." She handed Nigel the phone with an apologetic smile.

Nigel put the phone to his ear, tentatively. "Um…Hello?"

"Is Sydney still there?"

"Yes."

"Ask her to leave the room."

"What? She's hardly in any shape…"

"Do it!"

Nigel tossed back the covers on his side and set his feet on the floor. "Stay here, please?" he asked her when she started to rise. He pulled on his robe and headed downstairs.

"Alright, she's upstairs and I'm downstairs, now what's this all about?"

"You're seriously asking me that? You have bigger balls than I thought."

"Indeed, record-making in fact, now if that's all?"

"No that's not _all_," Alan mocked. "Just what do you think you're doing?"

"Well, I was sleeping before you harassed Sydney into risking further injury to herself."

"How dramatic, further injury? Really?"

"I was upstairs. She could have fallen or have you forgotten the cast on her leg?"

There was a bitter moment of silence, and then Alan spoke again. "Look, I'm not going to get into a battle of who's better equipped to take care of Sydney…"

"Sydney can take care of herself."

"But you just said…"

"Sydney is perfectly able to take care of herself, cast or no cast, but you bullying her into making the effort just because you have a twist in your knickers…"

"I want to know why you asked her to stay there with you?"

Nigel immediately became more anxious. "We…well….we haven't um…seen each other in awhile and…well…after all we did just suffer near death…"

"And that's why she's staying there? So you can catch up on old times?"

Nigel didn't like the sarcastic tone in Alan's voice. "Now…now see here. Sydney is my friend and I certainly don't have to…to explain myself to you or…or to anyone!" He glanced at the clock on his wall. "Especially not at one O'clock in the bloody morning!"

"Well, you'd better start explaining because I have the right to know!"

Nigel felt the familiar unease that came with confrontation pushed it back. "It's none of your business."

"I'm making it my business. She's my fiancé, or have you forgotten?"

"She's my friend, or have you forgotten?"

"You left!" Alan accused. "You left her to run off to England. You gave up the right to call her your friend or anything else!"

"You've left her before too, Alan. Twice as I recall, so why should you get another chance and not me?"

There was another long pause. "What…what are you saying?"

Nigel flushed and winced. "Look…It's late and I…"

"Tell me what you meant, or I swear to God I will fly up there and pound your scrawny ass until you do!"

Nigel cringed, closed his eyes and immediately remembered Karen's words.

_**She was devastated. I don't think she expected to miss you so much.**_

There had to be more to it. Sydney wouldn't have been that upset if she hadn't felt something more and that ideal made him bold. "I'm saying you have a fight on your hands," he told Alan. "Because I love her too."

"Look, I get that the two of you were close, God knows I couldn't figure it out, but that…whatever that was is hardly…"

Suddenly all of Nigel's doubts fled. "I _love_ her, Alan. Just as you love her, just as dozens of other _men_ have loved her. I love Sydney Fox and I know what I feel."

"You…you can't be serious! You…you and Sydney…she always said your relationship was strictly platonic!"

"It is, was… "

"You're not even her type!"

Derek's words interceded_.__** Type or not you are the one she needs!**_

"How do you know?"

"Because I am her type and I know the sort of man she is attracted to," Alan insisted. "Look, Nigel, you're a nice guy but you're far to…well…mild for a woman like Sydney and convincing yourself otherwise is just going to get you hurt."

That burned and Nigel felt himself flush at his secret shame. It was the sticking point, wasn't it? He wasn't Sydney's type. He knew it, everyone knew it.

Sensing Nigel's moment of weakness Alan pushed forward, a hint of regret in his voice. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be nasty about it but we both know it would never work between you and Sydney."

Nigel fiddled with his ear, agitated at the comment as all his previous doubts filtered back in. All the times her ex boyfriends laughed off the notion that he could be anything but a TA to Sydney. Every time the assumed he was no threat, or just dismissed him completely out of hand.

He'd held onto that resentment, all those little digs at his manhood and self esteem for years; he was sure it was part of the reason he and Cate never worked out. He hadn't been man enough for her either, except when he'd used the power of the spear to appear more confident and strong.

He'd let Cate walk away because he'd honestly felt he had nothing to really offer her. She was too much like Sydney, and like Sydney, she needed someone strong, reliable and far more masculine than he could ever manage to be. If he let this go any further, would Sydney hurt him as Cate had?

No, he'd made his play and Sydney had not laughed at him or spurned him. She said she would listen, she said she would explore the possibility and that had to count for something, didn't it? "At least I'm not trying to change Sydney," he retorted. "I'm not trying to force her into decisions that, if I truly loved her, wouldn't even be considered."

"What are you talking about?"

"Forcing her to retire. To give up her students and relic hunting."

"Sydney was the one who said she wanted to retire…"

"She said it because it is what you want, not her."

"Don't tell me what she said, I was there…"

"Relic Hunting is her life, as is teaching!"

"What do you know about it? You've been gone for six years, Bailey. She's changed, matured. She's ready to settle down and give all that up…"

"Getting married doesn't mean she has to give up her life, her career, Alan!"

"Do you honestly want her to continue, given what happened the last time? She almost died! If you cared about her you wouldn't want her to continue risking her life."

"It's her life!" Nigel insisted. "She will do with it as she pleases and if _you_ really loved her you would see that relic hunting is what she lives for. You can't ask her to stop because you're afraid she will get hurt."

"You're wrong…"

"I'm not!" Nigel felt the heat of fury rising in him. He was tired of everyone second guessing him where Sydney was concerned. Always belittling him in her presence, always mocking his insecurities when he and Sydney had been through things half of these muscled oafs would have run away screaming from, or worse, left Sydney to fend for herself.

None of them would have survived the things he and Sydney had and he would be damned if anyone, _anyone_ dared to pretend otherwise. Not now, not anymore! "You're right in that I have been away from Sydney for six years, but before that I was with her for almost a decade and I know what she needs, I know how she thinks."

"I've known her longer than you…"

"But obviously not better," Nigel denied as he felt the familiar twisting inside his gut. "I know her better because I watched her with her kids and I've seen the joy she feels when she manages to inspire the same passion in them that she has for history. I've seen her in the field, watched her risk her life day after day, desperate to find that next piece of history, to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. I watched her lose people she cared about, saw her battle with that grief and still strive towards the prize."

"You make her sound like she's addicted…"

"She is! She's addicted to showing the world what wonders it has to offer, what our past can mean for our future. She's bent on everyone having the knowledge, the passion she does, and making sure no one takes advantage of that knowledge, no matter what it takes."

"Look, I know that pull to find a relic. I chased them for years, but after I almost died from that virus I realized that I wanted more than climbing out of pit traps and through ancient ruins. Sydney has realized that too or I would never have asked her to marry me."

"You're trying to force her hand because you are worried about her…"

"Of course I am!" Alan barked. "Don't you understand? She could die doing this…she almost did!"

"Can't _you_ understand?" Nigel tossed back. "I live with that fear every single day, Alan, but you can't let the idea of losing her get in the way of loving her, don't you see? She does it because it makes her happy; it's who she is. How can you ask her to be someone she's not?"

"How can you want to throw her to the wolves knowing she could die at any time?"

"People die, it is a fact of life, and Sydney may well breathe her last on a hunt, but if she does it will because she is where she wants to be doing what she wants to do."

"Then you can't possibly love her."

"I love her more than you can imagine, Alan! I risked my life, put myself in danger and swallowed all my insecurity and fears to be in that place with her, to be at her side if and when something did happen. Sydney is who she is, and I love her enough not to let my own feelings interfere in her being who she is. I love her enough to make sure she is never alone in those situations."

"And if she dies on a hunt?"

Nigel swallowed the sudden grief in his heart, the reflex fear that the idea of Sydney dying caused. "Then she won't die alone." Nigel ran a hand through his hair. "Now, if we're done with this medieval beating of our chests I am going to bed. Good-bye, Alan."

Nigel disconnected the call and stood there, shaking with both anger and anxiety. He couldn't believe he'd just stood up to another man like that, just let everything he was feeling spill out in the moment. Perhaps Alan was right, he did have big balls.

"Bloody colossal," he muttered as he tossed the phone on the kitchen counter and headed back upstairs. "Sorry about that, Sydney, are…" He paused at the top of the landing and sighed.

Sydney had crawled into his bed and was now sound asleep. He braced himself on the stair wall and lay his chin on his hands. "Aww, Syd." He watched her awhile longer, and then started to head back down stairs to sleep on the daybed.

He stopped half way down as he reconsidered his conversation with Alan. "Right then," he decided turning around and heading back up. Alan didn't think he was right for Sydney, didn't think him capable of wooing her, well, he'd just show that braggart a thing or two.

He pulled off his robe and climbed in on the right side of the bed. It was his bed after all and he and Sydney had shared a bed several times. He leaned over to kiss her cheek. "Night, Syd."

She muttered something that could have been a reply, but was already deep in sleep.

Nigel smiled settled under the covers and closed his eyes. Just like old times.


	22. Discussion and Debate

DISCLAIMER; RH characters not mine. Please don't sue or maim. Please enjoy and review

**CHAPTER TWENTY TWO**

Sydney awoke with the sun peeking in the window of her bedroom. Wait…Nigel's den didn't have a window…She turned her head and immediately recognized Nigel's bare back. She suddenly remembered her conversation with Alan and coming upstairs to get Nigel.

She'd been too tired to go back downstairs and they seemed to be taking forever with their 'talk', so she had curled up under Nigel's covers to ward off the chill and apparently ended up falling asleep.

She stared up at the ceiling then back at Nigel beside her. She'd woken up in this situation multiple times, with Nigel on the other side of the bed, but this time was different. This time she had to consider what it would be like to wake up to Nigel every morning.

She smiled, slowly, liking the idea, and then almost immediately frowned as she remembered Alan and that horrible nagging guilt hit her again. She needed to get back to her own bed, at least for now.

She glanced at Nigel again, interested in the steady rise and fall of his shoulders as he slept on. Unable to resist, she leaned forward to get a better view of his face. He was incredibly handsome, and what made him twice as attractive was that he wasn't even aware of his own beauty.

As if sensing he was being watched, Nigel's eyes flickered open and he turned his head to see her peering down at him. He was startled for a moment, then slowly smiled.

"Morning," he murmured, sleepily.

Sydney carefully pulled herself off the bed. "I didn't mean to wake you," she whispered. "Go back to sleep."

"Where are you going?" Nigel sat up on his elbows and watched her limp/hop to the stairs. "Syd, wait and I'll help you…"

She shook her head as she reached the stairs and smiled. "I got it. Go back to sleep."

Nigel tossed the covers back, like that was going to happen. He'd drift back off and dream of her tumbling down the stairs and breaking her neck! "Wait…just hang on!" He reached her as she started down the first step. The stairs were narrow and not nearly wide enough for him to help her down them. "Come here."

"Nigel, I don't need…"

"A spanking, yes, you surely do." He caught her arm and pulled her back up on the landing. "Let me go and get your crutches, that will give you a little sturdiness at least."

Sydney sighed and leaned on the stair wall as he jogged down the steps and located her crutches at the bottom. "I think I am better off without them, Nigel."

"I don't want you to fall…"

"The crutches will make it harder." She waved him up. "Come here, I have an idea."

He set the crutches aside and mounted the steps again.

"Turn around."

He turned his back to her and she placed her hands on his shoulders. "If you're looking to climb on my back, I must warn you that it isn't a good idea."

"No. Now, go down a step." He did and with her hands on his shoulders, she hopped down on the step behind him. "There, see? I'll just follow you down and use your body for balance."

Nigel took another step down and Sydney followed. "If you fall…"

"I'll just land on you."

"Wonderful. That certainly makes me feel better." He moved down another step and waited for her to follow. "Perhaps we can get matching casts?"

"How romantic," she teased as she dropped down behind him. "If you'll stop bitching I'll make breakfast for us."

Nigel remained silent and Sydney had to smile. He knew when to shut up.

Finally they were on the main floor and Sydney found that she was wide awake. "See, piece of cake."

Nigel grumbled and handed her the crutches. "Stubborn woman."

"You're so grumpy in the mornings," she teased as she used the crutches and found her way over to the kitchen area. "You never used to be."

"I was, I was just better at hiding it." He turned back towards the stairs. "I'll be in the loo."  
She laughed as she inspected the cupboards and refrigerator, now stocked well with food, and wondered when Nigel had done the shopping. She pulled out some eggs, butter and milk with the intent of making French Toast, when Nigel's cell, that was laying on the counter, started ringing.

Out of habit she answered it. "Hello?"

There was a long pause before a woman's voice replied. "Who's this?"

"Sydney. Who's this?"

I'm sorry. I must have dialed the wrong number."

"Are you looking for Nigel?"

"Yes."

"He's just waking up. Can I take a message for him?"

Another pause. "Who _are_ you?"

"Sydney. I think we've been here before."

Sydney leaned against the counter, as Nigel returned stairs. He'd pulled on the top to his pajamas and a robe, his hair was brushed back and his eyes more alert.

"Who's that?" he asked.

"Hang on." She offered him the phone. "Some woman who prefers to remain anonymous apparently."

He accepted the phone. "Hello?"

Sydney balanced on her good leg and started mixing the breakfast ingredients together as she tried, unsuccessfully, not to listen to his conversation.

"No, I've only just returned," she heard Nigel say as he wandered over to drop on the sofa; poor baby still wasn't quite awake and some bitch was yelling at him; Sydney could hear the woman's squeals from where she stood. "I had an emergency."

Sydney pulled four slices of bread out of the loaf on the counter and found a frying pan.

"I didn't…I would have…I'm not coming back to work for awhile. I'm taking some time."

Sydney could tell he was getting agitated. He'd leaned forward and was holding his head with his free hand.

"She's a colleague of mine…no of course not!"

Sydney deflated a little at his remark. Colleague?

"Look, I've only just woken up. Can I ring you later? Okay, yes, I will. Okay. Bye." He ended the call and tossed the phone on the coffee table.

"Everything okay?" Sydney asked as she checked the oil in the pan, before dipping the bread in the mixture and setting it in the skillet.

Nigel rose and stretched as he returned to her. "You shouldn't be on your feet, Sydney," he replied as he walked around her to start the coffee.

"I wanted to make breakfast." She smiled at him, hoping to break him out of his brooding. "It's my turn."

He nodded and went about adding the grounds and water to the percolator.

"Was that a friend of yours?" Sydney asked. "She seemed upset."

"It's nothing," he assured and reached up to grab two mugs. "Just someone I work with."

Sydney turned the sizzling bread over in the pan. "It didn't sound like a work related conversation, Nigel."

He pulled down two plates and retrieved two sets of utensils. "We've dated a few times, that's all. She was worried because I basically disappeared off the planet for a week."

"And she wanted to know what you were doing with another woman in your apartment?"

"No…" Nigel set their places at the breakfast nook. "Well, yes, but it's hardly her business. We're far from exclusive and…well…I just didn't want to have to explain everything to her." He moved back around the counter as Sydney pulled the toast out of the pan and set them on a separate plate.

He turned off the stove, took the spatula away from her and tentatively wrapped his arms around her waist. "Good morning, Sydney," he sighed.

She grinned and returned his embrace. "Morning, Nigel."

"Breakfast smells wonderful."

"Hope it tastes the same."

He pulled back enough to meet her gaze. "We should have done this more often when we worked together."

"Made French Toast?"

"Hugged. I only ever got to hug you after I thought you were dead or when we found you and freed you from some great peril."

She laughed, gave him another quick squeeze and then turned to pick up the plate and bring it to the small table. "You could have hugged me anytime you wanted."

"No." Nigel retrieved the coffee, poured the hot liquid into their mugs and brought them to the table. "You wouldn't have let me."

"Don't be silly," Sydney smiled as she carefully settled at the table. "Why wouldn't I let you?"

"You were always very clear on where the line was." Nigel sat opposite her. "I had to be very careful not to cross it."

Sydney stared at him for a long moment, watched him take too pieces of toast and put them on his plate. "Was I really so unapproachable, Nigel?"

Nigel poured syrup over his toast. "Not at all, you've always been friendly and accepting and what not."

"Then why did you think I wouldn't want you to hug me?"

He looked up, met her gaze across the table. "Sydney," he said, a touch of scolding in his voice that she should even ask.

Sydney lowered her eyes, contrite. She supposed that she did make a habit of rebuking him whenever they got too intimate in certain situations, but it was a defense mechanism and she certainly had never thought he would consider it as a 'hands off' for everything.

It was sad really, because his words rang true, they had kept most intimate touching to a minimum, except when they had both gotten a bad scare or were worried for the other.

There had certainly been times when she was far more 'friendly' with him than she should have been, but she hadn't considered it might give him mixed signals. She was just so damn comfortable with him.

"I'm sorry, Nigel."

"It's nothing to be sorry for, it was simply the way things were." He smiled at her, to let her know that he had no hard feelings. "And you did give me some wonderful massages."

She smiled again, almost shy. "Well, technically that was part of your health plan."

Nigel laughed. "God, I've really missed you."

"Likewise." Sydney collected the remaining two pieces of toast and put them on her plate. "So, tell me what you've been doing all this time. We have a lot to catch up on."

"Well, there isn't really all that much to tell." Nigel finished off his coffee and rose to get another cup. "I'm usually pretty busy with teaching and exams, you know how that is."

"Are you enjoying it?"

"Mostly." He settled back in his chair. "I could do without the politics and the gossiping that goes on, but overall I like teaching and my students."

"Well, you certainly worked hard enough for it."

"Mmmm." He sipped his coffee then set it on the table. "I was doubtful at first, the university is quite a stickler for rules and regulations." He grinned at her. "Hardly what I'm used to from my last employer."

Sydney smiled as she ate.

"I settled in well enough, after all, it was more to the speed I had considered when I had made the decision to go for my Masters and then my PHD."

"Less manic and life threatening?"

"Less…everything. It's a fine school. My students seem to respond well to me and I do get to travel still for the occasional lecture or seminar." Thank God! He hated to think what would have happened if he had not been in Mexico for just that purpose.

Sydney picked at the last piece of toast on her plate. "So…you made the right decision then, moving back here."

Nigel picked up his coffee again and studied her over the rim. He had been wary of bringing up his life here, but he knew that they had to discuss it eventually. If he had known how upset Sydney had been at his leaving, he never would have gone, but he'd made that decision, initially with her support, and he had enjoyed his new life in England.

"I think I made the right decision for the time, yes." He put his coffee down. "But things change, Sydney, and the decisions I made…we made, are no longer in play. Now we have to think about new choices and new decisions."

When had Nigel grown so wise, so mature? He certainly was a far cry from that naive, awkward, wide-eyed student that had originally accepted the position as her TA.

"Nigel, I can't make you come back to the states and I don't want to live in England…"

"Oy! How about we work out this…other situation before we start talking about relocation."

"Well, if we were to have a…relationship we'd have to live closer. I don't do long-distance very well, or at all really, and it would never last."

Nigel rose, pulled his chair over by her and sat facing her. "We'll work it out, but first we have to figure out if this…us is what you want…"

"We want."

"No, Sydney." He caught her hand. "What you want. I already know it's what I want."

"I…I thought you weren't sure? I thought…"

"Now I am." He shrugged. "This isn't easy for me, telling you these things. Trying to be…so bold but I'm working very hard not to let the truth of telling you…um…intimidate me, I suppose is the word for it."

"Do I intimidate you?"

"Not as much as you used to, but it isn't you, it's…" He released her hand and sat back. God! This was so incredibly hard!

He was not comfortable with confrontations and discussing his feelings. It was a huge step for him to be the initiator in all of this, to force himself to appear confident when he was actually scared to death.

He rose, ran his hand through his hair, walked around the table to gather his courage then sat down facing her again. "You've been so many…people for me, Sydney. You've fulfilled so many roles in my life. Roles that were vacant, before I met you. Roles I wasn't even aware needed to be filled."

Sydney was trying to understand, she could see he was struggling, but she didn't want any more misunderstandings or crossed signals. She had to be sure. "I understand, a little…I think."

"When I came to work for you, from the first day I was in awe of your experience and your intelligence and just…your presence in general. It was formidable trying to keep up with you and you were marvelously patient and giving in that regard." Nigel caught one of her hands in both of his and smiled at her. "Oh, Syd. You really have taught me so many things, things I never thought I needed or wanted to know. You've protected me and nurtured me and trusted me as no one else ever had before."

She squeezed his hand. "Likewise. You've taught me just as much, Nigel. I couldn't have done half the things I did without you." She put her finger to his lips when he started his usual protest. "It's true!" she insisted. "Nigel, before I met you I was a pretty good relic hunter…"

"You're the best Relic Hunter, Sydney!"

She nodded. "I was pretty good," she repeated. "But when you came to work for me, I became so much better. I started to see things in ways I had never thought of before and because you were so damn smart I didn't have to wait to get an interpretation of a language or fiddle in my head for hours on a riddle."

"You could have handled it…"

She covered their hands with her free one. "You made me the Bionic Woman of Relic hunting, faster, stronger, smarter."

"You're exaggerating!" Nigel protested even as he flushed with pleasure.

"I'm not. Think about it, Nigel. Before we met I was just another relic hunter, just another history professor. Then, you come along and suddenly mysterious branches of government are coming to me to help them find a relic. Other hunters that I had lost relics to previously started to realize that as a team, we were unstoppable and we had little or no opposition when we were on the hunt."

Nigel considered all the times they had cheated death because of another relic hunter. "You call what we dealt with only a 'little opposition'?"

"Compared to what I was running into before you, yes. The conflict dropped considerably."

Nigel tried to hide the pleasure her words gave him, but he couldn't and he just started grinning. "Syd, all of that…may be true, but you were still amazing without me. You went six years after I left and never had any problems…"

Sydney released his hands and sat back. "I wouldn't say that, exactly."

Nigel scowled. "Why not?"

She shrugged and suddenly rose and grabbed her plate, forgetting about her cast and almost falling over.

Nigel steadied her and gently settled her back in the chair. "Leave it and tell me why you think things changed when I left."

"They did change, Nigel." She picked at her fork and kept her eyes lowered. "It wasn't the same."

"I was reading about you're adventures all the time! Every other week there was something in The Journal about your finding a new piece for a museum. If anything you seemed even busier than when we were together."

She shrugged again and pushed the remaining food around on her plate.

"Sydney, talk to me. What changed?"

"You weren't there," she muttered. "You weren't there for me to depend on. You weren't there to bounce ideas off of, or to translate, or to figure things out. You weren't there to harass me to be careful or to back me up when I was too arrogant to ignore my instincts and got in over my head."

"What do you mean?" A horrible thought crossed into his mind. "Sydney…were you…were you hurt? Before the cave, I mean. Were you injured on a hunt in the States?"

She shook her head and rose again. "It doesn't matter. Like you said, the choices we made then no longer apply." She retrieved her crutches. "I'm going to take a shower."

"Sydney…"

Sydney had already started walking away and Nigel growled in frustration. Fine, he wouldn't push her, but there were other ways of finding out information.

He rose. "I'll find you a bag for your leg," he offered instantly and watched her disappear into his office.


	23. Dinner & Drinks

DISCLAIMER: Relic Hunter not mine, blah yada, blah. Sorry for the length of time between updating, but thank GOD the holidays are over! Please, please review and let me know if you are enjoying the story. I'm a very needy author…ask anyone!

**CHAPTER TWENTY- THREE**

"I really appreciate you hauling all my stuff around, Nigel."

Nigel smiled as he set her shopping bags close to the wall and turned back to face her across the small pub table. "My pleasure, Sydney."

She grinned at him and raised her eyebrows. "Really? You hate shopping."

"I don't hate anything when I'm with you."

Sydney flushed with delight as the waitress approached. They each ordered a pint of beer and accepted the two small menus. "So, what's good here?"

"Everything!" Nigel replied quickly and got another laugh from her. "Truly. This place makes amazing food, Syd."

"I think I'll try the Irish Stew," Sydney decided and glanced over her menu at him. "What are you having?"

"Bacon and onion pie."

"Ooohhh…that sounds good too. I think I'll have that instead."

The waitress arrived with their drinks and quickly took their order.

Nigel lifted his glass in a toast. "To reconnecting," he offered.

Sydney clinked her glass to his and smiled. "Thank God for that!" She started to laugh suddenly and coughed as the beer almost went up her nose. "Do you remember that time you got so loaded on cognac that you thought we'd slept together?"

Nigel flushed and grinned. "What was I supposed to think? I woke up in your room without my trousers on." He waved his finger at her. "And you didn't help matters by insinuating that whatever happened, you'd keep a secret."

"Nothing happened!"

"I didn't remember anything after the salad! How was I to know?" He took a sip of his beer. "You, Sydney, can be an evil woman."

"And you, Nigel, should learn to hold your liquor."

"Just because you can drink like a sailor without it affecting you by no means concludes that you don't find yourself in a few uncomfortable situations, Syd."

"What? Me?" She grinned and took a drink. "Never!"

"What about when we were in France and you lost all your clothes in that poker game?"

"That was different! How was I supposed to know he had a Royal Flush?"

And when you let your guard down with Dallas and we found ourselves trussed together like pigs?"

"I can't be on my guard all the time!"

Nigel instantly thought of Daniel and suddenly lost his playfulness. "No, but perhaps you should be."

Sydney immediately knew what he was thinking, strange how that still worked. "I promise to be more careful."

He nodded as the waitress brought their food. "You have a horrible sense of reckless in you, Syd," he said as he sliced into his pie. "I shudder to think sometimes what you would have done had I not been there to pull you from the fire."

"Pull me from…" Sydney pretended to bristle. "How many times have I saved your English arse, Dr. Bailey?"

"I'm not talking about beating people up, in that regard I defer to you, of course." He took a bite of pie, chewed, swallowed, and then lifted his gaze to hers, his eyes dancing with mischief. "However, if you had but once stopped to think of the consequences before you rushed head long into things, perhaps you wouldn't have spent so much time beating people up to begin with."

Rising to the bait, Sydney pointed her fork at him. "You followed me, so what does that say about you?"

"That I'm either inconceivably loyal or inconceivably dense."

Sydney laughed. "Well, you're not dense, you're one of the most intelligent people I have ever known."

"Thank you, Syd." He indicated her plate. "Eat your pie, it's best when hot."

Sydney did as commanded and rolled her eyes. "Oh my God! This is fantastic!" She took another bite. "Mmmm, you weren't kidding."

"I never kid about food."

She noticed he was already halfway through his dinner. "Easy tiger, no one is going to take it away from you."

"It's been done before," he retorted as he popped another forkful into his mouth.

Sydney grinned and instantly recalled the steak she'd 'borrowed' from Nigel, when they were after a royal ring of Henry VIII's. "Well, there aren't any dogs to feed so go easy, or you'll get indigestion."

"Sorry." He lowered his fork, sheepishly. "I became so used to eating on the run or in a hurry that I can't seem to break the habit."

She nodded. She had to force herself to take her time sometimes too, but perhaps it was easier for her because she went with the flow and wasn't always looking over her shoulder.

"How's your leg?"

"Itchy!" she replied. "I can't wait for this stupid thing to come off!"

"You're lucky it's healing well, Syd." Nigel tried not to shudder as he thought about the bone that had been sticking through. "You were in bad shape." He paused for a minute. "Even without the break, your leg was sliced all to hell. You're damn lucky you didn't bleed to death."

Sydney thought for a moment. "Actually, I did that."

Nigel paused in lifting the last bit of his pie to his mouth. "Sorry?"

Sydney twisted, uncomfortably in her chair as she recalled the experience. "I…" She shook her head. Even know it was hard to talk about.

"Never mind," Nigel insisted, seeing her discomfort. "We don't have to discuss it, I'm sorry I brought it up."

"No, we…we should." She set her fork down and finished off her beer, immediately signaling for another one. "I think I need to." Nigel was probably the only person she could talk to about the experience, for only he would totally understand and not judge her.

The waitress appeared and Nigel spoke. "Two jack and cokes." He glanced at Sydney's surprised look. "Liquid courage."

Again she sighed at his ability to meet her needs, even without her having to say them. He knew her preferred drink too, when she needed the hard stuff.

"Professor Bailey!"

Nigel and Sydney glanced away from each other as a young couple headed towards their table.

"Fancy meeting you here!" the girl grinned.

"Gwen! Landon!" he greeted rising and received an enthusiastic hug from the girl and a handshake from the young man. "What a surprise! I thought you were both in Greece with Sheldon's expedition?"

"We were," Landon, a tall rakishly handsome young man with chocolate hair and sea green eyes explained. "But we had to pull out because of the attacks. It's worse now there than ever."

"I've been hearing that on the news." Nigel pulled a chair from a nearby table. "Sit, sit. What are you drinking?"

"Oh, we don't want to bother you on your date, Professor," Gwen declined, shooting Sydney a sly look, however Landon was already getting a chair for her.

"We can sit until our friends get here," he insisted. "Whatever you're having, Professor."

"Oh, Sydney!" Nigel immediately introduced them. "Sorry, this is my very good friend Professor Sydney Fox. Syd, meet Gwen Hammond and Landon Isles; they were my students until last year."

"Wish we still were!" Gwen pouted as she settled at the table. "Real history is hard work!"

"Sydney Fox," Landon commented as the waitress came over to deliver Sydney and Nigel's fresh drinks and took the new comer's drink order. "I've heard of you. You used to work for Professor Bailey!"

"No, I used to work for her," Nigel corrected. "Actually we were partners. It's thanks to Sydney that we have so much historical fact revealed."

"Hardly, Nigel," Sydney scoffed. "And if I am so are you."

Gwen extended her hand and smiled. "It's very nice to meet you, Professor Fox."

"Call me Sydney and likewise."

"What happened to your leg?" Landon asked as he glanced at her cast under the table. "Professor Bailey run it over with his scooter?"

Sydney laughed. "No, I fell in a hole."

"Deliberately?"

"Oy!" Nigel reached across and cuffed Landon on the head. "Mind yourself or I'll rescind your graduation certificate."  
Landon raised his hands, peaceably. "Okay, okay. Just curious."

"Do you live here, Profe…Sydney?"

"No, I'm just visiting." She wiggled her eyebrows at Nigel.

He smiled at her and returned his attention to his former students. "So, what happened in Greece?"

"Well," Gwen began, "We had just started the excavation, were less than a week in, when the Greek authorities warned us that we should leave because of bombings in the city."

"Shel didn't think we had anything to worry about," Landon interceded. "We were miles outside of the city, but we did take some precautions."

"Then, two nights later," Gwen continued. "A bomb went off less than a mile from us. The authorities showed up and said we had to leave. They were worried the rebels would try to take us hostage."

"Was anyone hurt?" Sydney asked.

"No, luckily and we got out just in time," Landon insisted. "Our camp was bombed the following night."

"You were very lucky," Nigel agreed. "Aside from that did you find anything interesting?"

Gwen shook her head. "Well, we hardly had any time, but Sheldon is already petitioning to go back. He is sure we were on to something fantastic, but the authorities are stalling him."

"I'll call my associate at the Greek embassy; see if I can help push it through for you."

Gwen immediately reached over to hug Nigel. "That would be wonderful! Thank you." She sat back and blushed. "Sorry, couldn't resist. I've wanted to hug you for three years!"

Nigel laughed, as Sydney sent them both a quizzical glance.

Nigel explained. "The university has a strict no contact policy with students and professors, in that I mean that we professors weren't permitted to touch or hug…"

"Or date," Landon grinned.

"Yes, or date students."

Gwen smiled. "But I'm not a student anymore." She reached over and gave Nigel another hug, causing him to laugh. "Hug, hug, hug and those stogy board members can kiss my arse!"

"Alright, alright." Nigel kissed her cheek and gently pulled her off him. "Enough of that or Sydney will be pressed to defend my honor."

Gwen giggled and smiled at Sydney. "Sorry, it's like a fat woman on a diet! The desert has been in front of me for years, but I couldn't touch!"

Sydney nodded. "I completely understand."

"Ah hell, me too!" Landon rose and pulled Nigel out of his chair for a bear hug, almost lifting Nigel off his feet. Everyone laughed as the young man returned to his seat. "Whew, glad that's out of my system."

"It isn't just that you're so attractive, Professor," Gwen insisted and watched Nigel blush. "It's that without you we never would have graduated."

"Oh, that's hardly true…"

"Oh but it is!" Gwen turned to Sydney. "I was just a rich, idiot, airhead when I first started at Oxford."

"You were never any such thing!" Nigel protested.

"I was, completely unconcerned about studying. I got into Oxford because it was expected, and barely made it through the entrance exam." She tossed back her hair as the waitress brought their drinks. "I mean, I was there because my mother and father and grandfather went, but I could care less about school."

"What changed your mind?" Sydney asked, intrigued.

Gwen pointed at Nigel. "He did," she replied. "All my other teachers were letting me blow through their classes because my father was on the board, but not Professor Bailey. If you didn't know the material and participate in class, you didn't pass."

"Hey, you make him sound like a hard-ass and he wasn't that at all!" Landon insisted. "He offered me after hours tutoring so I could keep up my grades. If he hadn't I'd have lost my football scholarship."

"Oh no, he wasn't bad!" Gwen corrected quickly. "Not that way. I had bad teachers and Professor Bailey wasn't one of them. What I mean is that he saw I didn't care, saw that I was just scraping by…"

"Not in my class," Nigel muttered, but Gwen caught it.

"Exactly! Not in his class." She took a sip of her beer. "I'd changed my major three times before I joined Professor Bailey's class, I thought it would be an easy A- but it wasn't. I thought I would just have to memorize some facts and dates, but he didn't teach that way."

"He pulled you in," Landon agreed. "I'd never been interested in school before, but the stories he told and the way he gave you the facts practically put you in the period he was talking about. I could imagine myself in Egypt or Greece or as one of the lost tribes."

"You couldn't just sit around and read your book," Gwen continued. "Professor Bailey had us reenacting scenes and giving each other quizzes or working in teams."

"Remember when he came in dressed as Sherlock Holmes?" Landon laughed.

"You didn't?" Sydney asked Nigel who again flushed.

"We were discussing the 17th century." He explained. "I had asked everyone to come dressed as an historical or literary figure from that period. It was to offer them a visual to perceive how people act, dress and what they say that can offer a clue when searching history for what is fact and what is fiction."

"Every legend has a basis in fact!" Both students announced and laughed.

"It was marvelous!" Landon grinned.

"If I am at all decent as a teacher it is due solely to Sydney. She taught me everything I know." He sipped his drink and peeked at Sydney over the glass. "And some things I wish I didn't."

Sydney was touched that he remembered and seemed to use so much of what she taught him. "I certainly did not teach you everything. I didn't teach you how to speak seven languages."

"Ah, but working with you kept me adapt at those languages."

"I didn't teach you all your facts about history either…"

"You taught me the undiscovered facts that history hadn't yet recorded, much more valuable."

Sydney actually felt her cheeks grow hot with his admiration and compliments. "You were pretty green," she teased, trying to push the subject away from her.

"I was a mere olive in your garden of experience."

She threw her coaster at him and laughed. "Oh knock it off!"

Nigel neatly avoided the coaster, and then reached down to pick it up off the floor. "She also taught me how to duck," he winked at the younger couple and set the coaster back on the table.

"Yours was really the best class," Gwen admitted. "I never had a passion for anything other than shopping until I took your class."

"You were passionate," Nigel insisted. "But you were bored and you needed something to bring that passion out."

"You see?" Gwen asked turning to Sydney. "You see how well he understands us silly students? Isn't he wonderful?"

Sydney smiled at Nigel, proud of him to have such loyal students. "He's something special."

"Oh for heaven's sake!" Nigel tossed, self-consciously. "Can we change the subject please?"

His students laughed, even as three more young people entered the pub and Landon waved at them.

"Only if you'll come say hello to our friends, we've told them all about you."

Nigel nodded and rose. "Excuse me for a minute, Syd."

She nodded and watched as he followed his students over to the table the three new people had converged on. She watched as he shook hands and smiled, completely at ease with them and all trace of his earlier embarrassment gone. She heard him laugh and something pierced the inside of her heart.

She realized that she had never really heard Nigel laugh. A giggle or a chuckle now and then but he always reined it back in before it became a full fledge laugh. And did he always tilt his head slightly when listening to someone? Did he do that with her? Give that extra ounce of attention?

They'd been apart for so long, everything seemed the same and yet…Why had she never noticed how easily he met her needs, and at times seemed to read her mind, as he had when ordering their drinks?

She watched him glance her way. Had he always had that impish gleam in his gaze, or was that something new? Had he always moved his hands so animatedly when he was talking to someone?

It saddened her to think of all the things she'd been too busy to notice when they had worked together. Even more so when she though about all his little quirks that she had missed when he was gone. All the things she had taken for granted.

Why had she let him go? Why hadn't she told him how much she had needed him when she had the chance? Pride? Fear? Stupidity? Probably all three, but how could she have known? He was Nigel, he was always there for her, he was always safe and secure and…well…dependable.

Then he was gone and she had only herself to blame. Only herself to depend on again, which was fine and good, but oh how she missed having him there beside her. He still didn't seem to understand how indispensible he had been to her. Perhaps, if she told him…? No. Better not to go there.

"Syd?"

She glanced up from where she had been playing with her coaster and found those beautiful hazel eyes locked on her as he settled back in his chair. "Hi," she said, quietly and he smiled a little.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded.

"Sydney."

A smile tickled the edges of her mouth. He knew her _too_ damn well. "I'm just thinking."

"Always a good endeavor, but it doesn't usually make you melancholy."

"Is that what I am?"

"Aren't you?" Nigel reached across the table and took her hand. "Do you want go home, Sydney? Do…did you make a mistake, coming here?"

She shook her head. "No. I'm not thinking about that."

"What then, luv?"

A secret thrill passed through her, despite her desire to ignore it and stop being such a girly girl. Did he realize he used a term of endearment or was it habit now for him to refer to a woman that way? Six years was a long time, a lot could change.

"We…I haven't seen you for a long time, or you me, and…suddenly we're thrown together." She shrugged and played with her glass rather than look at him. "Things are different."

Nigel didn't feel that way, if anything things appeared to be very much the same, at least between them. Perhaps he wasn't cow towing to her as much as he used to, but after all he no longer worked for her either. "What's changed, Syd?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "Maybe I have. You have."

"How have I changed?"

Sydney waved her hand impatiently, wishing she hadn't said anything. "Nothing, I'm just being stupid."

"One thing you have never been, or could ever be is stupid, Syd." He rose and settled in the chair Gwen had vacated, close to Sydney. "Come on, tell me. How do you think I've changed?"

"Nigel, it's silly, really."

"Please? I'm curious now and you know once my curiosity is peeked I'll be completely put out if I don't get to the end of it."

She smiled again and sighed. She allowed herself to lay her head on his shoulder, reveled in the comfort she found here. He didn't try and put his arm around her, or cop a feel, he just accepted that she needed a shoulder and provided what she needed; no strings.

"I guess it's just strange seeing you so…so confident with your students."

"I'd be a poor professor if I let them walk all over me, or I couldn't maintain their interest." He nudged her. "You taught me that."

"I did?"

"Of course, the very first time you threw a spear at my head."

Sydney laughed, but it quickly turned into a sob and she turned in her chair to embrace him. "Oh, Nigel." She wasn't one to be overcome by emotion, other than anger, but she had missed him beyond what words could say and couldn't contain her need to hold him any longer.

"I've got you, Syd," he whispered as he rubbed her back.

It killed him to see her so unstable. This wasn't his rock-steady, immovable Sydney, but that didn't matter. Whatever the reason for her turmoil, her need to be held, he would give her all that he could; and more if she asked.

"I missed you so much!" she whispered against his neck. "I never should have let you leave."

Nigel felt moisture sting his eyes at her admission and tried to blink them back. "Likewise," he murmured. "I never should have left you. I'm, so, so sorry."

Sydney sat back and wiped at her face. "No. You were right to leave." She accepted his handkerchief and blew her nose. "It was an incredible opportunity for you and I…What kind of a friend would I have been if I'd stood in the way of that?"

"An honest one." He squeezed her hand. "Syd, I had doubts about leaving, I should have listened to them, but you kept pushing me to take it and…I suppose I thought you no longer needed me."

"Oh no! That wasn't it at all!" She shook her head. "God, we're both a couple of idiots, aren't we?"

"Seems like." He regarded her quietly. "I'd come back if you asked me."

Sydney gasped, knowing what such an offer must have cost him. He was obviously happy here in England and enjoyed teaching at the university. She couldn't ask him to give that up, not even for her. "Oh, Nigel." She didn't know what else to say.

"Don't let's be sad," he told her as he lifted her chin to meet his gaze. "We're here now, safe and together. Regrets are part of life, but not all of it."

She nodded and tossed back her drink. "Yes, I know." Problem was the only real regret she had was about him. "I need another."

"How about we get it to go?" he suggested. "We'd be more comfortable at home."

Home. It did feel like home when she was with Nigel. But if she went home and got as drunk as she planned to, she might well take advantage of him.

"No." She signaled the waitress. "I feel like some nachos, do they serve nachos here?"

"I'm not sure." Nigel rose to move back to his original chair and Sydney caught his hand.

"Stay."

He nodded and settled beside her again. "You didn't finish your pie."

"I know, but it's cold now. Cake, do they have cake?"

"They do a lovely strawberry tart."

The waitress appeared and Nigel reached for his drink. He gulped it down as Sydney ordered two tarts.

"And two more of…_Gah_…" He wheezed as the liquor hit his stomach. "These abominations."

"You can stick to beer if you want," Sydney teased.

"I probably should, I'll be sorry in the morning." He wouldn't though. He would never be sorry for having this time with Sydney, for witnessing her vulnerable side; for getting the past out of the way and hopefully, securing a future with her.

The waitress wandered off and Sydney took Nigel's hand. "Nigel, you saved my life."

"It's a life worth saving."

"I thought I was going to die."

He shook his head. "Not possible."

"Oh? Why not?"

"Because I was looking for you." He squeezed her hand. "And I never would have stopped, Syd. Even if…if you were…" He swallowed hard and tried to shake off the feeling of despair. He held her gaze, determinedly. "I wouldn't have let you go alone."

"I think you actually mean that."

"I do. Absolutely."

Sydney blinked ferociously at the tears that threatened her once more. How could she not have seen how much he cared for her? Beyond any feelings of romance, he was and would always be her partner, her friend and the one person that would always find her and save her.

"Even after all this time?" she asked in wonderment. "Even after…after I let our friendship slide because…because I was hurt?"

"Our friendship never went anywhere, Syd." He gave into the urge to push a lock of her hair back behind her ear and away from her face and was thrilled that she did not rebuke him or give him 'the look' that she had so many times before when he got too close. "How could it? With everything we've been through together? Nothing could break the bond we have."

"But I…I stopped calling and…I didn't answer your emails and I was…I let myself forget you and…but I never did, Nigel. I never did and I'm so sorry that I let that happen because it was just so hard talking to you and not having you with me."

"It doesn't matter," he assured gently. "I never doubted you, Sydney. Not once. If you had stopped calling me altogether and we had no contact for six years or sixty years, I would never doubt our friendship." He tried to ease some of the staggering emotion between them. "I am now and forever shall be, your friend."

Sydney giggled at his Star Trek reference but couldn't stop the tears now, for she felt the same way. No matter how much she tried to forget him, tried not to think about him, he was always right there, in her heart.

She did the only thing her heart would allow, she leaned in and kissed him.

_**Oh Come on! The penalty for such a long chapter is always a cliffhanger!**_

_**LOL! I had to leave you wanting more….Right? (don't hurt me Celeste!)**_


	24. What Lines Do You Cross?

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine. Wow, two chapters in two days…aren't you lucky? Come on…show me your appreciation and review…Review…REVIEW!

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR**

"Syd, I am unbelievably pissed!"

She laughed as they practically fell through the door of Nigel's flat. Her cast caused her to overbalance and she lunged for him, they both landed on the floor.

"You must be pissed too!" he squealed delighted.

She did have quite the buzz, but was pretty sure she wasn't as gone as he was. She'd had far too many drinks, and Nigel, bless his heart, had even more beer. They had both gone a little further than they should.

"I'm injured!" she retorted as they tried to untangle their limbs. "Nigel! Get…get off!" she was laughing too much to push him off.

"Hmmm? You smell wonderful, Sydney."

"You're heavy!"

Nigel immediately righted himself. "Sorry about that." He leapt to his feet, kicked the door closed and swept her into his arms. "Up we go."

"Nigel! You'll kill us!" she giggled even as he started up the stairs. They bumped, knocked, slid up the stairs and made it to the top after several close calls.

Nigel tried to carefully set her on the sofa, and almost ended up atop her again. "I'll protect you," he assured and grinned sexily.

Sydney giggled again and put her hands on his chest. "Behave yourself, Mr. Bailey."

"Awwww…Syd!"

She had to laugh, he sounded like a ten year old that was denied the toy he most wanted. "Now, Nigel…"

"One kiss?" he asked as he loomed over her again. "I risked life and limb to carry you up, I deserve something."

Sydney was tempted to remind him that he already received a kiss, but was hesitant to bring it up. When she had kissed him in the pub he had not responded; in fact he had gone so still she was afraid she'd killed him. She sensed she had either shocked him beyond response or she had gone farther than he was ready for. However, judging by his current eagerness, she was mistaken on both counts.

She gave him a polite peck on the cheek and laughed at his pouting face.

"That's a hell of a thing to do to a fellow!" he whined and then leaned in to capture her lips.

Sydney thought, what the hell, it was only a kiss, two kisses actually but she wasn't complaining and so she let him linger.

Her arms coiled around his neck and pulled him closer as her mouth opened to his sweet invasion. God! He really was an incredible kisser, she could feel her loins reacting to the smell and feel of him.

Suddenly his body was flush against hers and her fingers danced beneath his sweater, desperate to pull it off of him and get to the skin beneath it. "Yes," she moaned against his lips. "Nigel…yes…" She wanted this, really wanted this!

Nigel's kiss pulled her even deeper into their joined passion, his hand slid down her stomach and across her hip as his fingers edged under the hem of her top. he pulled back abruptly, his breathing harsh and uncontrolled.

"God!" He stumbled back and ended up sitting on the floor as he ran his hands through his hair. "Syd…I…I'm so sorry."

Sydney sat up on her elbows, shivering now without his warmth, her breathing as uneven as his and her body primed for him to continue. "Nigel…" She began. She didn't want him to be sorry! She wanted him to keep going. She wanted him to make love to her!

He rose, stumbled slightly. "I…I forgot, Syd. I'm sorry I forgot about…about Alan. About our…agreement." He shook his head and looked everywhere but at her. "I've had too much to drink. I'm so sorry."

Sydney watched him dart up stairs and her heart and body ached. He had remembered their agreement while she had completely ignored it. What kind of person did that make her?

Maybe he really wasn't ready for them to have a romantic relationship. Could he be having second thoughts, or was he just coming to his senses? Alan had warned her that what she and Nigel were feeling was brought on by their experiences in Mexico and from being apart for so long. Was he right? Was all of this…this emotion she was experience just some sick after-effect?

She slowly sat up and bit her lip, close to tears once again. What the hell was wrong with her? When had she ever let her emotions rule over her like this? She had certainly never been one to cry at the drop of a hat!

Her cell phone rang and she reached for her purse; which had been dumped on the floor, to retrieve it. "Hello?"

"Hi sweetheart."

Her heart flipped and then sank at the sound of Alan's voice. "Hi."

"What's wrong, kitten? You sound sad."

"No, I…I'm just tired." She ran a hand through her hair. Yes, she was tired; tired and more than a little intoxicated. "Nigel and I went out to dinner and I guess it took a lot out of me."

"Well, take it easy. Don't need you falling down and breaking something else."

"No, no I won't."

"I just called to tell you that I love you. I know I said I would give you your week, and I am honestly not pressuring you, but I was sitting here and missing you. I had to call."

Sydney found herself smiling. He really was a wonderful man. "I miss you too."

There was a slight pause and then Alan said. "So…how's it going?"

"Alan," she scolded but couldn't help smiling. "I am not going to discuss it."

"Okay, okay. Had to try. So…How is your leg?"

"Fine. I may go back to the doctor and see if I can get it removed sooner. It's driving me crazy."

"I bet!" Another pause. "I went shopping for houses yesterday. That provincial one you liked is still up for sale and they actually lowered the price. I think we should snap it up. What do you think?"

Sydney's smile faded. How could she agree to that when she didn't know if she would even be marrying him? "I…don't know."

"Well, think about it. It's a great find and I think we'd be happy there. Needs a little work but you'd appreciate the historical value of it."

"Yes, it was beautiful."

"Inside has a lot of original woodwork and moldings, just your kind of place."  
"Alan, please. I…I can't decide on that right now." She glanced up and saw that Nigel had returned and was watching her, contritely. "I…I have to go."

"Okay. Well, I'll see you soon. Love you, kitten."

"I know," she sighed. "I'll talk to you soon." She rang off, tossed the phone on the coffee table and met Nigel's gaze. "Nigel, I'm so sorry for…"

Her words were cut off as he settled beside her and put his finger to her lips. "Don't. Don't be sorry." He traced her lips with a slow fascination that quickened Sydney's pulse. Then he caressed her cheeks, a deliberate caress on either side of her face.

Sydney closed her eyes at his touch, unable to help feeling loved, appreciated and aroused. "Nigel…" she whispered.

"I'm sorry," he returned, just as quietly. "I'm sorry because…because I want to break my word to you." He leaned in and kissed her left cheek, then her right cheek. "I don't want to think about Alan, or Daniel, or weddings or friendship. Just us, you and me." A butterfly kiss on her forehead, her nose. "Tell me it's okay, Sydney."

Sydney inhaled sharply as he touched is lips to hers in an achingly tender and uncompromising kiss.

"Let me love you, please?"

Her head was swimming with the alcohol she had consumed and thoughts of Alan; how this would hurt him. They would regret it in the morning, she knew that as sure as she knew anything, and yet…she had never wanted anything more.

"Nigel…" She closed her eyes again as he gave her that sensually sweet touch of lips. "God…yes. Yes, Nigel."

He moved in and captured her mouth, before she even finished saying the words and all other thoughts were lost to her. God. GOD! She'd never been so aroused, so needy, so damn content as she was kissing Nigel.

"Sydney," he whispered as he carefully pulled her up with him. "I love you, Sydney." They kissed and caressed their way to her room, where he gently settled her on the bed.

"Mmmm, we're…so drunk," she gasped as he turned his attentions to her neck.

"We're not that drunk," he murmured and lifted his head to meet her sinful gaze. "We can stop, Syd. We know we can stop, but…"

She met his gaze, allowed her mind to clear from the haze of sensations that were overtaking her. Nigel's gaze was as sober as hers, and as intense. They would remember this in the morning. They would know what they did and knew what they were doing now. What misgivings would come with the sunrise?

Once again, Nigel seemed to know what she was thinking. "No regrets," he promised.

She held his gaze and knew he spoke the truth. "None," she agreed and then, as if to prove that they were both still sober enough to do this, she asked. "Do you have…something?"

He nodded and pulled the protection from his pocket. "You have to ask?"

She trusted him completely. Always he thought of her. She nodded and lay back on the bed, pulling her with him.

Nigel's front door bell sounded, startling them. They looked at each other.

"Ignore it," she demanded, oddly afraid that it would be Alan.

Nigel did as commanded and began to kiss her again, but the bell sounded again, insistantly. He descended the stairs to the front door three at a time and hauled open the door. "Yes, what is…Cate!"

"Hello, Nigel." Cate took a moment to look at him and then threw her arms around him. "God, it's so good to see you!"

Nigel was in shock. This wasn't happening. How could this be happening? "Um…C…Cate. What are you doing here?"

"You left me a message."

"To call me! Not to…to show up at my door!"

Cate frowned and pulled away from him. "I haven't heard from you in almost a decade, Nigel. I thought…when you left the message I thought that you wanted to see me."

"No!" Nigel flushed. "I…I don't mean that, I mean…of course it's lovely to see you, but I…I just had a question that could have been resolved over the phone."

"Oh." Cate shoved her hands in her back pockets. "Awkward."

They stood staring at each other.

"I flew a long way, Nigel." What was wrong with him? This certainly wasn't the shy, mannerly Englishman she remembered. "Could I at least sit down for awhile and maybe get a drink?"

"I…I'm sorry. Um…come in." He stepped away from the door and invited her inside, rather than have the conversation in front of his neighbors He flushed and indicated the stairs. "My…um flat is upstairs."

She smiled and started up. Nigel ascended behind her until they stepped into his living area. "This is nice," she offered. "I've always liked English housing. Compact, but functional."

"Yes, well…" He moved to the refrigerator. "I'm afraid all I have is milk and some soda."

Cate wandered, investigating the area with interest. "Soda is fine." She paused at his collection of movies. "Wow! Watch a lot of TV do you?"

"Not really." He poured the soda into a glass and walked across the room to hand it to her.

She sipped her drink and smiled at him. "You were usually up for more interesting inside activities when we were together."

"Yes, well…Um… I'm sorry you came all this way for nothing."

"Not for nothing, it's still really good to see you." She settled on the sofa and crossed one leg over the other. "So, what did you want to ask me?"

"It doesn't really matter now, I…" He glanced up as Sydney stepped out of his office. The look on her face went from surprise, to fear, to outright fury. "Syd?"

Cate spun around, startled.

"What are you doing here?" Sydney demanded.

"Sydney!" Cate rose and appeared visibly shaken. "I…I didn't know you would be here." She looked at Nigel and then at Sydney again. "I…I thought you guys had…gone your…your separate ways."

Sydney turned her anger on Nigel. "Why is she here?"

"I…I…" What the hell was going on? He hadn't seen Sydney look at someone with such ferocity since she first met up with DaViega. But this wasn't her mortal enemy; this was Cate, their friend. Or so he thought.

Cate quickly set down her drink and wiped her palms on her slacks. "I should go."

"Yes. You should."

"Now wait!" Nigel exclaimed, confused and ashamed at Sydney for being so rude. "I left a message for Cate to call me, Syd."

"You're still seeing her!" Sydney was outraged. "You're still seeing that back-stabbing little…" She suddenly lunged at Cate, and probably would have made contact if Nigel hadn't stepped in front of the agent and Sydney's leg had allowed her swifter movement. "I told you I'd kill you if I ever saw you again, you bitch!"

"_Sydney_!" Nigel could just barely hold her back, and that was only because Sydney's cast gave her little balance. "Stop this!" He looked at Cate. "What's happened between you two?"

"I'm sorry, Sydney," Cate insisted. "When I got Nigel's message I thought I'd surprise him with a visit. I didn't know you and he were…I never meant for any of this to happen!"

"Any of what?" Nigel demanded, even as Sydney pushed against him, trying to land her hands on Cate. "Stop. Ow! Bloody hell… Sydney, stop it!" He, none too gently, pushed her onto the sofa. "Stay, damn it!"

Cate moved further back and watched in misery.

Nigel straightened his clothes and hair, askew from the wrestling match with Sydney, and looked at Cate. "What are you sorry for? What's this about?"

"Nothing." Both women answered simultaneously.

"Bullox. You two were great friends. What has happened to change you into enemies?"

"I'm not her enemy," Cate whispered.

"The hell you're not!" Sydney rebuked.

"Okay, okay. Let's calm down here." He looked at Cate. "What is it you're sorry for, Cate?"

"That she was born?" Sydney sneered and Nigel glared at her. He had never seen Sydney so vicious.

"Nigel, I…I shouldn't have come. I should have just called you back…"

"Why did you call her?" Sydney demanded turning her formable gaze on Nigel, who had the grace to flush.

"I…I just had a question."

"About what?"

"Well…I just…" God, what a mess! How did he explain that he was going behind Sydney's back to find out about anything that had happened in the past without Sydney ripping his head off? "I just wanted to…um…see…what I might have missed."

"What the hell does that mean?"

Nigel ran his hand through his hair, frustrated and settled on the sofa, facing Sydney. "I'm sorry, Syd. I wasn't trying to be deceptive, but the other morning you seemed so…withdrawn when I started asking about the time we spent…apart and I…"

"You were spying on me?" Sydney became enraged. "How dare you! You have no right to go behind my back and…"

Nigel rose, startled by her vehemence. "Syd, no! I didn't…"

"It wasn't my fault, Sydney," Cate persisted.

"The hell it wasn't!"

"Look, I never…"

"Shut up! Just shut up, Cate!"

Cate seemed to catch on that Nigel really had no clue what had caused the rift and her face fell. "You never told him?"

Sydney looked away.

"Told me what?" Nigel asked. "Sydney, what haven't you told me? What's this about?"

Sydney rose shakily. "You weren't there so it isn't your business!" she snarled.

"Sydney, please…"

"You left Nigel!" she screamed at him, consumed now by fear, fury and shame. "You betrayed me and it's your fault as much as hers!" She stabbed an accusing finger at Cate. "The two of you can go straight to hell!"

She started to move away, towards her room but Nigel interceded.

"Syd, please…I don't…" Nigel's head reared back from the force of Sydney's blow and he found himself on the floor seconds later.

Cate gasped, and then a deadly silence fell.

Sydney was breathing heavily, shocked and ashamed at herself for striking him. She knew part of her outrage was fueled by the alcohol in her system, along with jealousy. She and Nigel had been about to…and then Cate, damn Cate had to show up and ruin everything. She knew all this yet she couldn't seem to reign in her emotions.

Nigel massaged his jaw and carefully rose. He stared at Sydney, betrayed. "Cate, you'd better go," he said quietly, his voice deepened by the emotions he was trying hard to contain. "I'm sorry I hurt you, Sydney, but I can't change the past and I can't keep on like this. You're a strong, intelligent and reasonable woman, or you used to be. Now…I don't who you are."

He turned away and quickly climbed the stairs to his bedroom, leaving the two women alone. He hoped that they didn't kill each other, but it was no longer up to him.

He headed into his bathroom and closed the door. He looked at his face in the mirror and winced as he touched his jaw again. He couldn't believe that she'd hit him. Sydney had hit him before, but it was usually to save him, never to punish him and never had she hit him with such anger.

He locked the bathroom door, he wasn't sure why, and then stripped off and climbed into the shower. Perhaps they had had too much to drink. Perhaps he had crossed the line in calling Cate, but he was only trying to get closer to Sydney. She had obviously been holding back some trauma from the past, something she blamed him for. They could never be together until they worked through whatever that was.

He turned the water to cold, hoping it was wipe out any more alcohol in his system. Maybe he was just dreaming all of this? Maybe Cate didn't show up at his door and Sydney hadn't threatened to kill her. Yeah, maybe he'd sprout wings and fly too.

Finally, shivering under the spray, he switched it off and stepped out. He dried off and grabbed his robe off the back of the washroom door, shrugged into as he stepped back into his bedroom.

Sydney was sitting on his bed, waiting for him.

Nigel ignored her as he walked over, removed his watch and set it on the nightstand, then pulled back the covers and climbed into bed. He couldn't very well take his robe off with her there, so changing into his night clothes was out of the question.

"I'm sorry, Nigel."

He turned away from her and pulled the covers up to his chin.

"Please, please forgive me."

He could hear the tears in her voice and he steeled his heart against them. "You hit me."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I was…I was just so angry."

He remained silent. Yes she was angry, but now so was he and he'd be damned if he'd sweep this under the rug. He didn't even know what she was angry about, really.

"Talk to me."

He ignored her and closed his eyes. He felt the left side of the bed move as she settled there and touched his shoulder.

"Nigel, please? I'm sorry."

He shrugged her off and pulled the covers over his head. Yes, it was juvenile but damn it he had no recourse. There was no where else to escape to.

"What do I have to do to get you to accept my apology?"

That did it. He flung back the covers, spun around and glared at her. "Your apology? You hit me, Sydney!"

"I…was angry..."

"About what? Because I called Cate? Because I dared be concerned enough to want to know what put that haunted look in your eyes? Because we almost had sex? Bloody pick something, because I have no idea what happened to you down there and that scares me more than anything we have ever been through!"

Sydney lowered her eyes ashamed. "I…Seeing Cate brought back painful…memories…"

"About what?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

Nigel turned away from her and pulled the covers up again. "Then go to bed and leave me alone."

Sydney growled in frustration and punched the coverlet. "Nigel, I…I can't talk about it…"

"If you try and give me some need to know bullshit I sweat to Christ I will break your other leg."

Sydney almost smiled at his threat. "No, I can I just…I'm not…"

He sat up again, hearing the despair in her voice. "You blame me," he said quietly. "For whatever it is that happened, you blame me and I don't even know what it was." He reached for her hand. "Syd, don't you see that I can't fix something I know nothing about."

"I don't need you to fix it! I just…"

"Does Alan know? Could you tell him?"

Sydney winced at the betrayal in Nigel's voice. "He…oh, Nigel. Please don't let's talk about this now. Can't…can't we just hold each other and…and be grateful that we're both together?"

Nigel released her. "I never knew you to be a coward, Sydney Fox."

A sharp pain gutted her, for she knew his words to be true. "Things have…changed."

"What changed, Sydney?"

Sydney started to cry and Nigel couldn't stand it. He pulled her into his arms.

"Bloody hell," he muttered even as he caressed her hair. "Impossible woman." Sydney wrapped her arms around him and clung as if she was afraid to let go.

They sat like that for a long while, then Nigel said. "Is Cate dead?"

Sydney released a noise that was half sob and half laughter. "No, at least not by me."

"Good. I doubt blood on the walls is covered in my deposit."

Sydney pulled back and looked at him, her face wet with tears. "I really am sorry that I hit you."

"Yes, as am I."

"Can I stay up here with you tonight?"

Nigel raised his eyebrows, startled. "Stay as in sleep, o…or stay as in…something other than sleep?"

"Sleep."

He nodded and lifted the covers, not in the least disappointed. It was better, he realized, not to cross that line. At least not until they were sure of what they wanted and after all, it wasn't proper in the scope of things. He told Alan he would fight for Sydney, but he would not fight dirty.

He leaned in and kissed her quickly on the lips, before settling down, facing her. "Love you."

She smiled and covered his hand with hers, between them. "Likewise." She did love him, she had always loved him; whether it was a romantic love or not was yet to be discovered.


	25. Comfort and Pain

_DISCLAIMER: RH not mine, please don't sue. Read the story, enjoy the story and hopefully you will review. Thanks for the comments so far. Only a couple of chapters left! Warning- The use of tissues may be required-_

**CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE**

Nigel awoke the following morning, sluggish and his head pounding. He moaned and reached for Sydney, only to find she wasn't there. He sat up and looked around. She was always an early riser, and was probably already down stairs fixing breakfast. He smiled and then winced. God, his head felt like the entire cast of Glee were tromping around in it.

He tossed back the covers and stumbled into the bathroom to take a few Tylenol with a mouthful of water. He studied his reflection in the mirror and shook his head. There was a bruise forming just under his left eye. "Lovely," he muttered and reached for his toothbrush.

After his morning routine in the loo he returned to his bedroom and quickly dressed, then jogged down the stairs. "Sydney?" he called as he came to the lower level. All the lights were off, the sun was already high in the sky and peeking through his living room windows. The apartment was quiet.

Maybe she went back to her own bed? He checked the office and the small washroom, no sign of her. Her satchel was gone and so were the shopping bags she had yesterday.

He dropped down on the bed, gutted. She'd left. She'd left in the middle of the night without even saying goodbye. He folded his arms around himself, trying to be angry, trying to stop the increasing flow of devastation that was threatening to overtake him.

"You blew it," he muttered and dropped his head in his hands. "You had a second chance and you bloody well blew it." Sydney didn't love him, at least not the same as he loved her. Why had he listened to Derek? Why had he let himself hope?

He'd been hurt multiple times with Cate, but it never felt this intense, this painful. He blinked rapidly, shocked to feel the tears in his eyes and determined to keep them back. He would not cry over this. He hadn't cried over Cate or Amanda or any of the others! He was a man after all and Sydney was just a woman. She couldn't help not returning his feelings.

"Oh God," he sobbed as a single tear escaped. His body shook though he made no further noise. A steady stream of tears streaked his cheeks and some dropped onto the floor from where he was hunched over.

He squeezed his eyes shut, shoved his fists against them, frustrated that he couldn't stop, and actually afraid that, from the way he was feeling, he might never stop.

"Nigel?"

His head shot up as he looked towards the doorway. Sydney! She was back!

"Are you still in bed, lazybones?" she called. "I have a surprise from you, get up!"

Nigel stood, shakily, half afraid he was imagining her voice, but then he quickly ran his hands across his face and stepped out of the office. "S…Syd?"

Sydney glanced at him from her position in the kitchen, behind the island. "Hey!" She turned back and continued to unload the bags she had set on the counter. "I stopped at the grocery store and got a great deal on some T-Bones."

Nigel grabbed a tissue from the box on the coffee table, quietly blew his nose and tried to look normal. "Oh…um…Why didn't you wake me." God, why couldn't she have waken him, so he wouldn't have gone through such torment? "I…I would have taken you."

She grinned over her shoulder at him. "You were sleeping so soundly I couldn't disturb you."

Nigel whose heart was doing flip flops and felt like there was a T-Rex stomping around in his stomach tried to appear normal. "How…" He noticed the number of bags. "How did you get it all back?"

She stepped out from behind the island and showed both her legs, now free of confinement. She did a little pirouette.

"Syd! Your cast is gone!"

"I stopped at the doctor's office and promised sexual favors if he'd remove it today."

Nigel's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

"No!" She laughed. "But I did a lot of begging and he took pity on me."

"Does your leg hurt at all?"

"Nope."

"Well that's…that's great, Syd!"

She grinned again and turned back to the bags. "I was in such a good mood that I stopped at the market and picked us up some fixings for an amazing lunch." She paused. "Do you have a grill?"

"Um…no but my neighbor does and I can borrow it, I am sure."

"Great!" She paused as she turned and noticed the bruise on his cheek. She set down the bag of potatoes and walked over to caress the injury. "Oh, Nigel. I'm so, so sorry. Look what I did to you."

She had no clue what she had done to him, and he wasn't thinking about the bruise on his cheek. "It's fine."

She noticed the moisture in his eyes, the slight hint of agony. "Does it hurt?"

"No."

"Do you have a hangover? You look…ill."

He shook his head and tentatively wrapped his arms around her. "I…I'm just so glad you're here, Syd."

She smiled and hugged him back. "Likewise." She inhaled the scent of his freshly washed hair and light cologne and exhaled contentedly.

"Syd, about last night and…and Cate, I…"

"Sssh," she insisted and gently kissed him on the lips. "Let's talk about something else, okay?"

He could sense she wasn't willing to be pushed and so he nodded. "Okay." He'd do anything just to keep her here. He was lonely the minute she stepped away to continue unloading the groceries. "Um…I noticed your shopping was gone."

"Oh, I hung it up in the closet, hope that is okay?"

Of course! Why hadn't he checked the closet before working himself into a lather? "Um…so, what would you like to do today?"

"I thought we could put the steaks on to marinate then maybe catch a film somewhere. Anything good playing?"

"I…I could check the listings and see."

Sydney turned and frowned at him. "Are you sure you're okay? You seem off today?"

"No I…I just…" He decided to be truthful with her, since his little deception had backfired so badly. "I…I'm just really glad you're still here."

Sydney stared at him and then realization dawned. "Nigel!" She immediately moved to embrace him again. No wonder he had looked as if he had been crying when he came out of the office. "You thought I left?"

He nodded.

"Oh no!" She hugged him hard. "I would never leave without saying goodbye!"

The embrace reminded Nigel of when they'd been a captive of Tslarov's, it had that urgent-relief feel to it and he gladly reciprocated. "I…I woke up and you were gone and your purse and…and clothes." He shook his head as he rubbed her back, more for his benefit than hers. "I didn't check the closet. I thought…because of last night…"

Sydney shook her head and tightened her grip. "No way! I would never do that to you!" She could only imagine what he'd went through waking up and finding her gone, think she had flown home. "I'm sorry! I should have left a note or something, but I wanted to get to the doctor first thing and…I just wasn't thinking."

He shook his head and pulled back to look at her. "You're here," he returned simply, his voice deep with gratitude. "That's all I care about, Syd." His hands turned into a soft caress across her back. "I…I know you may still decide to go back to…to Alan and that is completely your choice, but please don't ever just leave…okay?"

"I promise." She gave him a quick peck on the lips to seal the deal, then got caught up in the sudden passion in his gaze and touched her lips to his once more, for longer this time. "Nigel," she whispered as the third kiss turned sensual.

Nigel's hand moved upwards to cradle her head, his touch tenderly guiding as his lips teased her mouth to open wider. Sydney moaned in approval against him and drove her fingers his hair.

Nigel's phone rang and they both jumped almost a foot. They grinned at each other shyly and Nigel darted for his cell where he'd left it on the coffee table as Sydney finished unloading the groceries.

Sydney fanned herself with a package of lunch meat and tried to regain control of her libido. Sweet Mother of God! She'd been kissed by a lot of men and nothing, absolutely nothing compared to Nigel's kisses. She didn't know if that was because he was so good at it or because his lips seemed to fit so perfectly against hers.

She found a container to put the steaks in a marinade and poked the meat with a fork several times then dropped them in the Tupperware. She heard Nigel excited about something but couldn't quite make out what he was saying as he had moved into the office.

She opened the bottle of marinade she had purchased and poured it over the steaks,, added a half can of beer from the supply she purchased and placed the container in the refrigerator.

She wiped down the counter, folded up the bags and placed them in a drawer she found with other bags and then had nothing left to do but wait and try to cool down. It felt a little weird kidding Nigel, they'd been friends for so long it almost seemed unnatural. But there was nothing about her reaction to him, no sir!

"Sydney!"

She pushed off from the counter and smiled at him. "Right here."

"Do you mind if we forgo the movie? I just had a call from a good friend of mine who's wife just had a baby and they want us to come and see."

"Oh," Sydney tried not to show her unease and forced her smile to stay in place. "Sure."

Nigel grabbed his wallet and jacket. "Excellent, we won't stay very long and I am sure you'll like them." He helped her on with her jacket and moved to the stairs. "I'm bloody glad I don't have to haul you up these things anymore!"

She smacked him lightly across the back of the head as she followed him down. "Hey!"

He stopped on the stairs and turned to her. "Besides," he grinned wickedly and kissed her. "Now you can make it to my room more often."

"Nigel!" Sydney's pretend shock only made him laugh as they headed outside. "I'm not that easy!"

"Pity," he slid his hand into hers and smiled into her eyes. "I am."

She laughed as they headed down the street to the trains.

They arrived at Nigel's friend's flat about fifteen minutes later. They lived in a separated house on a lovely country hillside. He knocked on the door and it was immediately answered by a young red-haired girl in pig-tails.

"Uncle Nigel!" She threw herself into his arms and he caught her, lifting her up into his arms. "Mummy said you were coming! I'm so glad you're here! I have a baby sister!" She wriggled down and grabbed his hand, pulling him into the house. "Come see, right away before she falls asleep! She's forever falling asleep just when I try to play with her!"

Nigel laughed and caught Sydney with his free hand as they were pulled inside. "This chatterbox is Celeste," he said as Sydney reached back to close the door, even as Nigel was pulled across the foyer and into the parlor. "Hang on, luv, I'm coming!"

Sydney smirked and followed them into a cozy room with matching furniture, deep green walls, a fireplace and a couple seated on a leather love-seat. The woman had the matching fire in her hair as the little girl at the door.

"Nigel!" A tall, lanky fellow greeted from his position and waved. "I see you've been met by the welcoming committee?"

Celeste had released Nigel and was now standing anxiously at the arm of the love-seat staring adoringly at the tiny pink bundle in her mother's arms. "Look! We have the same eyes, come look!"

"I'm looking!" Nigel glanced back at Sydney who moved beside him. "Sydney, these are my good friends Nick and Margaret Algoode. Chaps, this is my very good friend…"

Nick rose and extended his hand. "Sydney Fox! Well, I'll be buggered!"

"Nickolas!"

He glanced at his wife. "Sorry love." He shook Sydney's hand with both of his own. "What a treat to meet you! Nigel's told us all about you of course and his work in America."

Sydney smiled. "It's nice to meet you."

Margaret rose and turned so that they could see her little bundle of joy. "Nigel, meet your God Daughter, Regan Amelia Algoode."

Nigel gaped at her. "M…My what?"

Nick grinned and clapped his hand on Nigel's shoulder. "Only if you want the job, old man? We couldn't think of anyone else better for it."

Nigel beamed at them. "I…yes, I mean…of course!"

Margaret smiled and started to hand him the baby. "All right God- daddy, your first duty is to hold her."

Nigel accepted the baby with such seriousness that Sydney almost started laughing. "Oh Meg, she's absolutely beautiful!"

"Yes, we do good work," Margaret agreed as she wrapped an arm around her husband's waist.

"Look at her, Syd!" Nigel turned so Sydney could better see the baby. "She's so tiny!"

A small tuft of dark hair, the same color as Nick's curled around Regan's head and piercing blue eyes stared up at Nigel as if he was the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

"Yeah, you're almost the same size," Nick teased.

"You're lucky I'm holding your child, you wan…" His gaze rested on Celeste who was pulling on the end of his shirt, looking for attention. "Weasel," he amended and settled on the sofa so that Celeste could crawl up next to him.

"Look, Uncle Nigel! See, see? She has my eyes!"

"I see that, and such lovely eyes." Regan smiled and Nigel's heart melted. "Wow."

"I have a nice smile too!" Celeste insisted with just a spark of jealousy and bared her teeth to Nigel. "See!"

Nigel inspected dutifully and his eyes widened. "You lost two teeth!"

"I did! Mummy says they'll grow in bigger. I hope that doesn't hurt."

"I'm sure it won't."

"That looks good on you," Margaret smiled at Nigel.

"Yeah, when are you gonna get started, mate?"

Nigel flushed and raised his gaze to Sydney. "Just waiting for the right woman, I guess."

Celeste pulled on Nigel's sleeve. "Regan drools in her sleep, just like daddy," she whispered loudly in his ear and Nigel laughed.

"Stop pestering Nigel, Cele," her mother scolded and tried not to smile at her husband's chagrin. "Nigel, Sydney, would you like some tea?"

"Yes please," Nigel replied returning his attention from to the baby. "Would you like some tea, my luv? Hmmm? You're too young for tea, how about some milk, hmmm?"

"I have some peach schnapps if you prefer," Nick offered dryly as he settled on the other side of Nigel. "Let her grip your finger. She's a hell of a grip. Going to be a cricket player!"

"Nick!"

He waved at his wife. "She doesn't understand what I'm saying!"

"I do and that will be enough bad language out of you." Margaret turned to leave the room.

"I'll help," Sydney offered and followed her back into the hall and down a few steps to an open-concept kitchen. "Your house is lovely."

"Thank you!" Margaret grabbed the kettle and set it on the burner, then dropped two teaspoons of tea into a ceramic teapot. "We've only been in it about two years and are still unpacking!"

"Where are your cups?" Margaret pointed to the cupboard behind Sydney and she turned to retrieve four cups. "Nigel certainly seems at home here."

Margaret smiled as she reached into the cupboard for a box of cookies. "He and Nick went to school together. They kept in touch when he was in America, but really got close once he moved home." She placed several cookies on a plate. "It's been nice having him here and he gets on so well with Celeste." She smiled to herself and then at Sydney. "He'll make a wonderful father someday."

Sydney's smile faded as she placed the cups by the teapot. "I'm sure he will."

Margaret pulled out a serving tray and milk and sugar bowls. "Are you in England just visiting Nigel or are you on a hunt?"

"Visiting."

She nodded. "That's grand. He's missed you." When Sydney gave her a startled look she explained. "Well, he and Nick are mates, but it was obvious that the two of you were very close friends. He talked a lot about you and kept up on anything you were doing in America; well what we could get in the news here, anyway."

The kettle boiled and Margaret filled the cups, then added them to the tray. "I'm glad you're here." She picked up the tray and smiled at Sydney. "May I ask a personal question?"

Sydney nodded.

"Are you and he dating now?"

"We…no. No, we're just friends." Sydney flushed at her own deceit. Why had she said that? She suddenly felt like Judas denying Jesus and her stomach tightened painfully.

"Oh, well, maybe you can convince him to start dating more. He always seems to pick women that are just no good for him." Margaret headed out of the kitchen. "He's a great guy and all he wants is to find someone to settle down with and raise a family with."

"He…he does?"

"Of course! He loves children and is always talking about having his own one day." Margaret paused and turned back to Sydney. "Are you sure you two are just friends? He doesn't look at you like a friend."

Sydney swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes, yes we're just close friends."

Margaret shrugged. "Pity." They entered the parlor and found Nick holding the baby and Nigel stretched out on the floor with Celeste, playing with her toys.

Margaret set Nigel's tea on the table and settled beside her husband on the love seat.

"Come and play, Sydney," Celeste offered when Sydney hesitated in the middle of the room. "We're playing treasure hunt."

Nigel smiled up at her and then immediately frowned. "What's wrong?" He rose from the floor and took Sydney's hand. "Syd?"

"I…I just have a bit of a headache," she murmured. "I think I'll head back."

"I have some aspirin?" Margaret offered immediately.

"I'll take you home."  
"No. Stay with your friends, I can find my way."

Nigel regarded her quietly. Something wasn't right and the hair on the back of his neck stood at attention. "No, I'll go with you." He turned back to his friends. "I'd better make sure she gets back okay. Sorry to cut the visit so short."

"Not a problem at all. You know where we live, come by any time." Nick smiled. "You too, Sydney. You're welcome here any time."  
Sydney nodded ashamed of herself. "Thank you. Congratulations on your new daughter."

The minute they were outside Nigel turned to her. "What _is_ wrong?"

"I told you, I have a headache."

"Don't insult my intelligence." He caught her shoulders and turned her around. "Syd, what happened? Did Meg say something to upset you?"

Sydney shook her head and stared at the ground, so close to tears she could hardly stand it. So close! She'd been so close to happiness, true happiness, but she was kidding herself. "Nigel, I…I think I should go home."

"Okay, we'll catch a cab…"

"No, Nigel. My home."

"What did I do?" Nigel stared at her. "Tell me what I did to change your mind?"

She shook her head and pulled him into her arms. "It's not you," she insisted. "You're perfect. Please don't think it's anything to do with you."

"Then why…"

"I promised I wouldn't leave without telling you goodbye." She willed her mask in place and pulled back. "I gave my promise to Alan, too, Nigel. I have to go back. Please understand?"

Nigel wanted to scream, cry, beg her to stay, but he could see that her mind was made up and he would not force her to feel something she obviously didn't. Besides, he had some pride too. "Okay, Sydney."

His sudden lack of resistance, the certain defeat in his voice was almost her undoing. "Go back inside with your friends."

He shook his head. "I wouldn't be very good company."

Sydney could see his heart was breaking and hers shattered with it. She had to do this, it was better for both of them and she struggled with telling him the truth, but in the end, her shame won out. Besides, he would get over her. Right?

"Still friends, right?" She felt horrible reminding him of his promise when she was so obviously breaking one of hers.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and stared at the ground. He'd been kidding himself the entire time and now it was time to grow up and stop being self-indulgent. Fairy tails were for children. There were no soul mates, no fairy godmothers or savior knights of the grail. There was no perfect woman and no handsome prince.

He lifted his gaze to Sydney, who looked just as wretched as he. "There is no happily ever after," he murmured.

"Sorry?" Sydney asked, having not quite heard his comment.

"Nothing." He shrugged off his sudden depression and stared into the eyes of the only woman he had ever truly loved. "I love you, Sydney Fox. I love everything about you and I probably always will." He had to be her friend, how could he be anything else? "I love you enough that I want you to be happy. If that isn't with me, then so be it. Go to the man who makes you happy."

Sydney's lower lip quivered as she struggled not to break down. "Oh, Nigel." How could she do this to him? How could she have hurt him like this just because she thought…She shook her head and took a deep breath. "I'm so sorry, Nigel."

"No." He took her hands and shook his head. "Don't ever be sorry. You've given me more than I have ever imagined having. I will never, ever regret that." He lowered his eyes to their hands. "I will always be your friend. I never want you to doubt that, but…"

Sydney bit her lip as her heart thudded in her chest. "But?"

Nigel leaned forward and gave her the softest, gentlest, most excruciatingly tender kiss in the history of kisses, then slid his keys into her hands and released her. "I can't be here."

She nodded, even as a single tear escaped and slid down her cheek. She understood, of course she understood. "I'll wait," she promised even as her entire body shook with the shock of what she was losing.

Nigel caressed her cheek. "Goodbye, Sydney." He shoved his hands back in his pockets and turned away.

Sydney shoved her fist into her mouth to keep from crying out to him as he walked away from her. Then, and only then did she truly realize how much she loved him.


	26. Aftermath

_**DISCLAIMER**__: RH not mine, please don't sue. Read the story and hopefully you will review. (hey that rhymed!)_

_Thanks for the comments so far. I know everyone is anxious and concerned about whether Nigel and Sydney will actually get together. It's a debate, because you can have the happily ever after, or the angst of remaining friends. Some think the relationship should not change and some want more._

_Well, in all honesty, I have written two endings. The comments I get on this chapter will help me define which one I will use. So…enjoy!_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX**

"_Well, here we are."_

"_Yes."_

"_What time is your flight?"_

"_In an hour."_

"_So…I guess this is goodbye then."_

_Nigel nodded, solemnly, then pulled her into his arms and squeezed her tight. Other people milled around them as they stood outside the Departure area of Heathrow Airport, neither noticed. _

"_Come see me," he whispered. "Don't let's wait another six years."_

"_No. I promise. And…you should come for a visit too."_

_He nodded and gave her another squeeze before reluctantly releasing her. "I'll do that." On impulse he leaned in and kissed her cheek. Finally he said "Be happy, Sydney." _

"_Likewise," she replied. _

_He started to turn away and she caught his hand. "Nigel?"_

_"Yeah, Syd?"_

_"We had a good run, didn't we?"_

_"A damn good run." He squeezed her hand and then released it and walked away, leaving her standing alone._

"Nigel?"

Nigel looked up at the pretty blond sitting across from him and for the life of him couldn't remember her name. "Sorry?" he asked and hoped he wasn't blushing.

"You haven't heard a thing I've been saying have you?"

"Yes, of course I have." She hadn't stopped talking since he'd sat down.

He'd been thinking of saying goodbye to Sydney, again. He'd replayed it so many times since she left it was a wonder he thought about anything else. God, had it really been almost a month now since he'd left her at the airport? Since he said goodbye to his last chance of happiness?

The woman raised her eyebrows and leaned forward, revealing more of her ample bosom. "So do you think it is a good idea then?"

Nigel floundered and tried to back track over her words. Damn Nick and his bloody blind dates! "Yes, of course, if...if you think it's a good idea."

"So you think I should quit my job, stay at home to be barefoot and pregnant?"

Oh God! "I...uh...well...no...I mean...that is to say...Was that what you were talking about?"

She growled and bolted up from her chair. "I should have listened to my friends! I knew someone as pretty as you either had to be gay or a complete wanker!" She snatched up her purse and flounced out of the restaurant, leaving Nigel the unwilling suspect of the other diners interest.

A waiter appeared at his table and offered a look of condolence. "Need a drink?"

Nigel was tempted, but he shook his head. He'd drunk himself almost to death the first week Sydney was gone, then he picked himself up and went back to work. Tried to move on with his life; but there was no more joy in it for him.

"Just the check please."

"Belay that," a voice commanded and Nigel's gaze shot up as Derek Lloyd settled in the recently abandoned chair. "We'll have your best bottle of wine, please."

Nigel didn't have the strength or will to argue; it would be a waste of time with Derek anyway. "Why are you here?"

Derek smiled as the waiter delivered their meals, the woman had ordered a steak and salad. Nigel it appeared had just ordered a salad. "Bring my friend a steak too, will you?" he asked the waiter as he tucked his napkin into his shirt.

"I don't want a steak." Nigel didn't even want a salad. He was so depressed he didn't even reprimand Derek for eating his date's dinner.

"Sure you do, you're wasting away." Derek cut off a big chunk of steak and stuffed it in is mouth. "At least Legs had a healthy appetite; I hate women that eat like rabbits."

"Legs?"

"The skinny blonde chick that just huffed off."

Nigel started to rise; he didn't have the energy for this. "Fine, enjoy your meal."

Derek reached across the table and caught Nigel's wrist in a vice grip. "Sit," he ordered and Nigel sat. "Now," Derek continued as he sliced into his steak again. "What the hell happened between you and Sydney?"

"Nothing," Nigel replied as the waiter appeared with their wine, offered Derek a sample who nodded and then filled their glasses. "Nothing happened which is exactly as it should be."

"Don't be a moron, Sydney loves you."

"As a friend…"

"No…I love you as a friend…" Derek pointed his knife at Nigel's startled look. "And if you ever repeat that I will make sure your body is never found."

Nigel almost smirked. "I'm sure."

"Things were going so well. Tell me what happened?"

"Derek, please just forget it. I never should have listened to you."

"My instincts told me…"

"Your instincts were wrong!"

"My instincts are never wrong."

"You must be joking? What about Jean?"

Derek's face darkened. "That was an extenuating circumstance." His face returned to its usual cocky expression as he speared some lettuce. "And that issue is very close to being rectified."

"Did you kill her?"

"Why would I kill her? I can't get information out of her if she'd dead."

Nigel didn't want to think about how that information might have been extracted. "Sydney is back home, where she belongs and she is marrying Alan."

"That's not going to happen."

"What are you planning to do? Kidnap Alan and make him disappear."

"There are so many ways…"

"Derek! Do not interfere."

Derek was startled by the vehemence in Nigel's voice. "But she…"

"I mean it. If you are my friend, as you claim, you will leave this alone."

Derek slapped his fork and knife down. "Damn it, why should I? Why should we _both_ be miserable and alone?" He grabbed his wine and swallowed the glass, then poured himself another. "You have a chance with, Sydney. Nigel. Don't give up without a fight…"

"It's done. I had a chance and it didn't work out." Nigel finally reached for his wine. "Sydney needs someone she can feel equal to. Someone she is confident in and that person is not me. You're kidding yourself if you think you can make her change who she is."

"Bullshit."

"You shit, the bull's on your plate."

Derek's eyebrows rose, glanced at his steak, and then he laughed. "All right, my friend. For you, I will butt out." He toasted Nigel and sipped his wine, his eyes dancing over the rim of his glass. "For now."

"Wonderfully big of you."

The waiter brought Nigel his steak and it looked and smelled so good he decided to at least try a piece. It would be a waste of good food if he didn't.

"In other news, I wanted to let you know that I am this close," he held his fingers a centimeter apart. "To assuring that the Gural Nataz will never bother you or Sydney again."

It was Nigel's turn to be surprised. "Really?"

Derek nodded as he popped the last piece of steak in his mouth. "I have a handle on the top guy, but I need your help to set the pieces in place."

Nigel hesitated, the idea of ridding the world of the Gural Nataz and freeing himself and Sydney from their shadow was incredibly tempting. "I won't help you kill anyone."

Derek chuckled. "My dear boy, there are more ways to skin a cat than with a knife." He shrugged. "I just thought you would like to take part."

"I'm not really in that field anymore, Derek. I'm a teacher."

"Now who's kidding themselves?"

Nigel ignored him and stuffed a piece of steak in his mouth to avoid commenting.

"Don't you miss it?" Derek teased. "The thrill of the hunt?"

"Being shot at," Nigel retorted.

"The intrigue…"

"Being lied to…"

The exotic locations…"

"Disease and dysentery…"

"Outsmarting the competition…"

"Imminent death?" Nigel finished. "No, I most certainly do not miss it."

Derek laughed as the waiter stopped by their table to ask if everything was okay and if Derek would like some desert. "Sure, bring us two pieces of whatever pie you have."

The waiter nodded and hurried off.

"I certainly hope you're paying because I'm not footing the bill for your appetite."

Derek pretended to look wounded. "Last time I let you take me to dinner."

"I didn't take you. I invited a perfectly lovely lady and you usurped her position…."

"Who you had no interest in…"

"How the devil do you know! I could have intended on taking her back to my flat and have my way with her!" Nigel realized that he had raised his voice and flushed at the speculation of surrounding diners. Damn Derek for getting his back up!

Derek chuckled again. "No, you wouldn't. I was sitting across from you and you looked like you wanted to be anywhere but here, with her."

"That…that wasn't her fault…"

All traces of amusement fled Derek's features and were replaced with what almost looked like genuine concern. "No, it's Sydney's."

Nigel set his napkin on the table and stood. "I've had enough and am going home."

"I need you, Nigel."

"What the devil are you on about?"

"My plan won't work without you." Derek rose, dropped a handful of bills on the table and moved closer to Nigel. "I know you're done with all of it, but this will free you and Sydney of their interference ever again." He put his hand on Nigel's shoulder. "You will have full disclosure and complete control over any relics found within their organization."

That was tempting. The Gural Nataz had no doubt a treasure trove of historical artifacts that they had either stolen or acquired on the black market. Restoring them to their rightful places, to be shared with the world would be an amazing accomplishment.

"If you won't do it for me, do it for Sydney. To keep her safe."

Nigel couldn't refuse. "Fine, but if it involves jumping from a plane or any repelling I'm done."

Derek clapped him on the shoulder and grinned. "No worries, my friend."

"And none of this 'need to know' nonsense."

"Anything I know, you'll know."

"And no guns."

"Oh come'on!"

Derek led Nigel out as they argued over his demands.

* * *

Sydney glanced out her window at the people gathering for the ceremony below. It was another beautiful day in Hawaii and they had decided on an outdoor, beach wedding. The isle that she would be walking up was bordered by rows of white chairs, flowers and garland ribbons. The serene sound of the ocean was just a few feet away from the wedding patio mixed with the chatting guests.

She drew her head back in and moved in front of the full length mirror. Her dress was flowing white silk and strapless. Her hair was arranged atop her head with a crown of pearls and lace, accented beneath a sheer, white veil. In her hands a beautiful cascading bouquet of yellow roses, lavender lilies and white daises intertwined with silk lavender and gold ribbons

Sydney set her bouquet down and adjusted her veil as there was a knock at the door to the bridal suite. "Come in!"

Karen entered, looking stunning in her jade green brides-maids dress. "Syd, you look amazing!"

Sydney turned and smiled. She didn't feel amazing, but she knew she was doing the right thing. She loved Alan, and she was sure they would be happy together, but she didn't feel as excited as a bride should. "Thanks, Karen.

"This was dropped off at the front door for you." Karen offered her a small, flat box. "They said you should open it before you come down."

Sydney smiled, curious. "Thanks." She set the box on the table, then glanced back at Karen. "Is everyone downstairs?"

Karen's smile faded. "I haven't seen him, Syd."

Sydney nodded in acceptance. . "I'll be ready in a few minutes." She really didn't expect Nigel to come, but she had sent him an invitation. She understood that he needed more time, and she would give it to him.

"Okay." Karen hesitated. "Syd…are you sure you want to do this?"

Sydney offered Karen a warm smile. "Of course."

"It's just that…"

"I'm sure, Karen."

Karen nodded and left Sydney alone. Sydney set the box on the dressing table, untied the red ribbon and lifted off the top. She pushed back the tissue paper and froze.

Inside was the ancient scabbard and knife last seen in the hands of Fabrice DaViega. She reached in and with trembling hands removed the item, carefully pulling the knife out of the scabbard just enough to show the hidden words through the holes of the scabbard, the clues that led to the sacred Astronomicons. It was the real thing.

Instantly, she thought DaViega must be here, and her instincts went on high alert. She reached for the folded card inside and slowly opened it, expecting to see his infamous, taunting words of 'Tick Tock' but instead the note said '_The Clock Has Run Down.'. _

She scowled. That was Nigel's handwriting, she was sure of it! What did it mean? Was DaViega dead or was did the assassin have Nigel and was taunting her, insinuating that his time was up? Damn him and his riddles!

She noticed a manila envelope beneath the tissue and pulled it out. It was thick and she ripped open the seal. Inside was a stack of bound papers. She flipped open the cover and gasped. A detailed list of some of the most precious artifacts ever recovered, and some that had only been rumored to exist.

She continued to run through the pages. Hundreds of artifacts catalogued, authenticated and described in historical detail. "W…what?" At the very end of the book was a toll free number instructing that she call.

Sydney rushed to find her cell phone and quickly dialed it.

"Worthington Storage?"

"Um…hello this…this is Sydney Fox…"

"Oh! Professor Fox! Are you checking on your units? They've all been pressurized and sealed against moisture and heat, as you requested."

Sydney slowly sat down. "As…I requested?"

"Yes ma'am. Your assistant's instructions were very clear. We have pressurized, leak proof trucks on standby for whenever you want to move the collection, as you specified."

Sydney stared at the manifest again. Her assistant? She didn't have an assistant anymore unless…Nigel! Her mind whirled with the possibilities of what she was holding in her hands.

"They're all for you," a familiar voice said and she stood and spun around to find Derek Lloyd in a handsome three piece suit, leaning against the wall of her suite. "To do with what you will."

Sydney disconnected the call. "What…what is all this?" she demanded.

Derek pushed off from the wall and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Wow, you really do make a beautiful bride, Sydney."

"Derek! Where's Nigel? What have you done with him?"

"My, my. Such concern for someone you tossed over for another guy." Derek tsked. "I wonder what dear old Alan would say to that?"

Sydney flushed with fury. "You have thirty seconds to tell me what is going on or I swear I will throw you out that window!"

Derek glanced at his watch, impressed. "Wow, Princess Bride to Bridezilla in two minutes."

Sydney grabbed him by the collar and pulled him forward. "Twenty seconds," she growled.

"You're going to ruin your pretty dress…"

"Ten. I swear I will make Jeffery Dalmer look like an angel when I'm done with you, Derek. Now talk!""

"You're beautiful when you're angry."

Sydney grasped his throat and Derek held up his hands, sensing he had pushed her far enough.

Okay, okay!" He backed off as she released him. "Think of it as a wedding present from me and Nigel." He smoothed down his suit. "Although, I personally don't think you deserve it."

"What?"

"They're done, Syd."

"Who?"

"The Gural Nataz," he replied. "They won't ever bother you again." He indicated the book. "And, their spoils are now in your hands to disperse as you see fit."

"Derek…How...How did…Where's Nigel? Is he here? Did he do this? Was he hurt? How could you involve him…"

"Again with the concern?" Derek inspected a gift basket of chocolate and selected a piece. "Surely you're not worried about someone you ditched…"

"It wasn't…"

"Turned your back on…"

"You don't understand…"

"Dumped…Ooh…truffles."

Sydney grabbed him by the collar and spun him around, desperately. "Derek!"

Derek took his time to unwrap the candy and popped it in his mouth, savoring it. "He's not hurt, if that's what you're worried about." He glared at her. "At least not physically."

Sydney sighed in relief and some of the cramps and nausea that had been building inside of her started to ease. "Thank God."

"God didn't do this," Derek rebuked. "And He's not who you should be thanking."

"What do you want me to say?" she asked, frustrated. "How can I believe that it's really and truly over? And this…" She lifted the manifest. "This is…inconceivable!"

Derek shrugged. "Depends on your definition of the word," he replied. "And as to what I want you to say? I don't want you to say anything, Sydney." He turned on her suddenly. "In fact, I expect you to say nothing because you are just as thoughtless as every other woman I have ever met."

"Hey!"

"I had such high hopes for you, but you let me down. You'd rather hide in your ivory tower where it's safe and there are no hard decisions…"

"Excuse me! I make hard decisions every day of my life!" Sydney snapped. "And I've saved your ass more than once."

Derek waved off her bravado. "The ability to fight doesn't impress me. You can train a rooster to fight." He shook his head. "Real courage comes from inside. It means risking the one relationship in your life that means the most to you, by telling the truth. By taking a chance and showing your heart." He regarded her with distaste. "Only to have your heart crushed by a world-renown ball-breaker."

Sydney felt her heart twist and the pain in her stomach return full force. "You don't have the right to lecture me," she insisted, shrugging back her shame.

"Nigel is my friend…"

"And he's my partner!"

"Not anymore."

"Just because we're not working together doesn't mean we're not partners anymore." Derek didn't understand, he didn't know how close she and Nigel were and how hard it had been for her to walk away. "You're a lone wolf. You don't understand what having a partner means."

"Sure I do…"

"Baloney! Your entire life is a fabrication. Hell, Derek probably isn't even your real name!"

"It isn't," he smirked. "But we're not talking about me. We're talking about you and Nigel…."

"Which is none of your business!"

Derek regarded her with an intensity that made Sydney increasingly uncomfortable. "I know what it's like, Sydney," he stated quietly. "To love someone who doesn't return your feelings. No matter how much you try, you can't get rid of that gut-wrenching ache. You can't ever stop thinking about that person and how you didn't measure up."

Sydney stared at him, startled that a man she had known for years and one who excelled at keeping secrets and showing no emotion would suddenly open up to her . "I can't give him what he wants, Derek. He wouldn't be happy with me. There are…other factors…"

"Have you asked him what he wants?" Derek asked in a softer voice. "Think about what you're doing…"

Sydney moaned in frustration and barely contained agony. "You don't understand…It's complicated…"

"You know what's not complicated, Sydney?" Derek asked as he moved to the door. "The fact that you've trampled on the heart and tap-danced on the pride of the best person I have ever met."

"Don't…"

He opened the door and turned back to look at her, disappointed. "I've been witness to the worst of humanity and the absolute best, Sydney, and none of them can come close to Nigel Bailey. The fact that you hurt him beyond what most could recover from, and yet, he would still risk everything for you. That's not complicated. It's just sad."

"Derek!"

He turned back.

"Why…what happened with you? Why didn't you tell the woman you were in love with how you really felt?"

"Because I knew of a better man that loved her first," Derek replied. "And because he trusted me to keep her safe."

Sydney stood there as Derek walked out and closed the door, frozen by his words and her own shame. Had he meant her? He'd been in love with her and stepped aside for…for Nigel?

She turned, as if in a dream and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Tears streamed down her face, ruining her make up, but she didn't care.

She yanked off her veil and threw it on the floor, then dropped down on an antique chaise and started to cry.

"Scootchie?"

She was so miserable she couldn't even lift her head at the sound of her father's gentle voice. A few seconds later she was in his arms and he was rocking her, as he had when she was a child.

"Oh Daddy," she cried. "I've made such a mess of things."

"Well, no one's perfect, baby." He kissed the top of her head. "Not even you."

"I hurt him. I hurt him in a way that is unforgiveable!"

"Who? Who did you hurt?"

Alan, Nigel and now Derek…"God, pick a number!" She started to sob again and Randal waited until she had regained some of her composure.

"What are you talking about, sweetheart?"

She shook her head and accepted the tissue that Randal offered her from a box on the table next to the chaise. "He loves me, Daddy. He said he loves me, truly loves me!"

"Alan?"

"Nigel!" She gulped and shook her head. "I was already engaged to Alan when Nigel told me. At first I thought it was because we'd been apart and just missed each other and then I almost died and Nigel saved me and…"

"What! Wait a minute, back up…you almost died?"

Sydney waved it away. "Doesn't matter. I love him too, but I…he wants…I can't give him what…what he wants…and…and Alan can…he doesn't want…And now Derek…damn him for being…so…he's a better…friend than me and…It's better…I don't want to…to disappoint…and I promised!"

Randall pulled his daughter to him again, completely perplexed. "Oh, Scootchie."

She'd been such an easy daughter to raise. He'd never had to deal with any of this irrational emotional crap that he'd heard from his friends who had daughters. Now that he was faced with it he had no idea what to do.

"I don't understand a thing you've just said, baby." He pulled back, grabbed another tissue and dabbed at her eyes, then put it to her nose. "Blow."

Sydney did.

"I think it's just nerves, sweetheart. Every bride gets them…"

Sydney sniffed and shook her head. "No, it's more than that!"

"You love Alan?"

"Yes! He's a good man, Daddy."

"I'm not doubting that," Randall replied. "But you also love Nigel?"

She nodded.

"And whose this Derek fellow?"

She again waved her hand. "He…never mind him. I can't…can't do anything about him…but Nigel…and Alan…oh Daddy!"

"This is quite the SNAFU you've developed."

She nodded again, miserably.

"Sydney, you can't marry a man if you have feelings for another. You have to make a decision. You can't play with a man's heart and not expect repercussions, sweetheart."

"I know. Oh, Dad. What am I going to do?"

"I can't tell you that, baby." Randal sighed. "This is your life and you have to choose." He settled next to her again, grasped her hands in his large ones. "The only advice I can give you is this. If you were about to breathe your last breath…" He paused and his gaze narrowed. "And we _will_ be talking about that _almost_ part later." He caught her chin and pulled it up to meet his gaze. "Who would you want beside you?"


	27. Pride and Presumtions

DISCLAIMER: RH characters not mine. This has already gone much farther than I had intended when I originally started the story, so thank you for keeping it alive. Hope you are enjoying the story, but if there is not resolution in this chapter it is because Celeste has given Nigel too many kisses to get him motivated and now he just won't settle. I think Sydney has had too many servings of spice and vinegar to be of any help. Hope you are still enjoying it tho

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN**

Sydney walked the fine polished halls of Oxford University. She'd been there several times, usually when researching or looking for information on a relic, but she had never really taken the time to appreciate the scope and prestige that the university offered.

She had flown in from Boston the night before and was anxious to see Nigel, and yet her boots seemed heavier than usual; her steps slower, clumsier. She had so much to tell him, would he listen? He had promised that they would remain friends, but she had hurt him a great deal and other than his note with the manifest and a very brief E-mail last month wishing her a happy birthday, she had no word from him.

It was two weeks to Christmas and the small town of Oxford was lit with Christmas lights and fluffed with white snow. Sydney didn't like cold but she loved Christmas and she enjoyed snow. Not today however. Today she was too nervous to enjoy anything.

Realizing that she was stalling as she paused to inspect a trophy case, she forced herself onward. The assistant in the office had told her the number of Dr. Bailey's classroom, now she just had to find it.

Finally she came to her destination, the Historical Studies classroom, and quietly opened the door. It was a larger theatre than her room at Trinity, and probably held well over a hundred students.

Students filled the seats, a lot of students thought Sydney, as she settled for a chair in the far back of the auditorium. She had hoped to get him alone, but it appeared she would have to sit through class first.

Unlike her students at Trinity, there was almost no chatter or fooling around. Students entered, sat in their seats with their laptops ready.

Nigel was at the blackboard finishing off a timeline on Julius Cesar and when Sydney spotted him her heart leapt in her chest. He wore black dress slacks, a light blue collared shirt, and a dark jacket over it. He looked very much like a college professor but she missed the cargo pants and sweaters that he used to wear.

He turned to the class and removed his glasses. "Experience is the teacher of all things." He surveyed them. "Who said this?" He pointed to a student. "Sharon?"

"Julius Cesar."

"Correct. What other bits of wisdom did this great man impart on society?" Several hands went up and he selected the first one he spotted. "Adrian?"

"I came, I saw, I conquered."

"Good, good. Anyone else? Mary?"

"Would you ever date a student?"

Several students twittered in amusement.

"Absolutely!" he replied and watched the girl lean forward, hopefully. "If she could tell me when Julius Cesar married his second wife Pompeia," he replied without blinking. "The exact date."

The class watched Mary frantically try to recall the date, and then slump in her seat, defeated. "Bugger it!"

"Incorrect," Nigel smiled to take some of the sting out of her disappointment. "But thanks for playing."

She blushed and returned his smile as he picked a student next to her.

"I love the name of honor, more than I fear death."

"Excellent! Reed?"

A tall, lanky student with blue-black hair started at being picked. "Um….uh...Eat Tea Brutish?"

"Et tu Brute," Damien laughed. "Ya tosser!"

The class chuckled

"Ah, the famous last words." Nigel smiled and returned his glasses to his face. "The renowned playwright Shakespeare actually first penned the phrase 'et tu, Brute', and this was based on a report by a man named Suetonius, who was…?"

"He was a Roman scribe," Mary replied in an obvious attempt to please her teacher again. "He chronicled the life and death of Cesar."

"Fantastic!" Nigel returned to the blackboard. "Suetonius writes of the death of Julius Cesar as he was slain by Brutus." Nigel wrote a phrase in Latin on the board, _κα__ὶ__ σ__ὺ__ τέκνον._ "This is what Suetonius actually wrote in his chronicle. Now who can translate?"

Damien lifted his hand, smugly. "Et Tu Brute."

Nigel made a very loud buzzer sound and had to hold back a grin when the sophomore jumped in his seat and flushed red. "Next contestant? Reed, care to try?"

Again Reed looked uncomfortable to be picked. He sat up a little straighter and stared at the words on the board. "Uh…You…and you too…babe...no child!"

"Exactly right," Nigel grinned at him, picked up a candy from a bowl on his desk and tossed it to the younger man. "Well done."

Sydney watched as Reed flushed happily with his accomplishment and unwrapped his reward. She smiled. Nigel was good with these kids, very good and she was impressed at how he slapped down a cocksure student in the same moment he boosted the confidence of another.

"The exact translation is 'and you too, child." Nigel perched on his desk. "This gives credence to the long suspected rumor that Brutus was actually the son of Julius Cesar."

Reed was sucking happily on his candy as the fellow next to him said. "That's cold man. His own son killed him."

"It hasn't been the first time that someone in authority was murdered by a family member," Nigel reasoned. "In fact, history is riddled with these kinds of instances, due to the fact that many people of the time believed that the only way to keep their royal bloodline pure, was to marry inside their own family. Therefore, if you were killing a member of Royal Blood, chances are you were related."

"Incest is best!" Adrian chuckled and received a few ewwws from the ladies in the class.

"That's foreigners for you," another student sneered. "They don't understand what is decent and honorable."

"Climb on down from that high-horse, Callum," Nigel interjected. "Up until the early 18th century, our own Monarchy was riddled with the same issues. Kings married their cousins, had intercourse with their sisters and kept mistresses regardless of how many wives they had."

"That's just wrong."

"Wrong or not, it's history. Look at King William II who was killed by his own brother, who became King Henry I. King Henry's son, King Henry the II kept his wife imprisoned for years and ordered the death of his own nephew."

"King Richard III murdered his sons," a petite brunette announced suddenly. "Had them stabbed to death, didn't he?"

"He did, indeed," Nigel agreed. "The list is endless. The ideals that we hold to now were not even thought of in the recesses of history. No one has a completely pure ancestry."

"So why even talk about it then?" Callum retorted. "Why air century-old dirty laundry?"

"Because it isn't about the scandals or the incest or the murders," Nigel insisted. "It's about how they lived and who they were and what our connections with them should be."

"Hey, I'm all for dating my cousin, mine is a hot little bird with a ginormic…"

"Interest in history?" Nigel finished and Callum smirked as the other students chuckled. "I didn't say we should be like them. History is in the past for a reason, but we can certainly learn from the past. We can learn how cultures survived the world during those times, and it was a hard one."

He rose and walked closer to his kids to interact more with them. He pointed to one of their lap tops. "They didn't have the internet or telephones and if you had to go to the loo you did it outside and wiped your arse with whatever plant was available." He winked. "And hoped it wasn't a cactus."

The students laughed and ewwwed at the time.

"These were barbaric times, certainly compared to the time we live in now, and yet, through the violence and plagues and hardships amazing feats were happening."

"Like the building of the pyramids?" Sharon offered.

"Yeah, or the great Acropolis in Greece!"

"The Tower of London!"

"The Emperor's City!"

"Yes, yes, these are all wonderful feats of architecture and they deserve mention, but history isn't just about what a culture might have built or how they built it, it's also about exploring how they thought." Nigel insisted. "What were their daily rituals and why did they do them? How did they heal their sick or raise their children? What deities did they worship and why did they worship them? Are their beliefs and traditions based in fact or just faith? How are we different from the people in the past and how are we similar?"

Sydney watched as he enraptured his students and felt herself falling under his spell. All eyes were on him and there was not a bored expression or a tapping finger in the place, at least not from where she could see.

She was also very impressed how he handled a student crush, his ears got a little pink, but over all he hadn't seemed flustered, which was a big step for him. Teaching suited him, and it was obvious that it had awarded him a far greater confidence than he had previously.

She began to doubt her decision to come here. Perhaps he would be happier in the life he had chosen then one she was willing to offer him. Would he still be hurt and angry? Would he refuse her? Watching him with his students made her think she really didn't know him at all.

The end of class bell shrilled through the hallways and students began to gather up their things.

"Essays are due on Monday," Nigel reminded them. "They count for twenty percent of your grade and there will be no extensions."

"When are we supposed to cram for our finals?" Callum whined.

"I would hope you've already been studying since they are next week."

"Professor Bailey," Reed called as he slid his laptop in its case. "Some of us are wondering if you'd be willing to make a wager on our finals?"

Nigel's eyes brows rose. "What kind of wager?"

"If we all pass you have to watch a movie that we pick one day in class and you have to treat us all to a pint at O'Leary's."

"That's a fair wager, but where's the catch with the film?"

"It _won't_ be a movie you'd like," Walter, a short, stocky Englishman grinned. "It will be a horror movie."

"God." Nigel shuddered slightly. "Not one of those ghastly slasher films full of blood and guts?"

They all grinned.

Nigel considered the idea for a moment. "All right, however with the price of beer these days a round of pints could be costly, so you all have to do more than pass. You all have to get an A on your exams."

There was a collective groan.

"That's not fair!"

"Not asking much are you?" Mary scoffed.

"Not really," Nigel replied. "You all know the material and I expect you all to pass with flying colors."

"Sure, but…an A, all of us?"

Nigel shrugged. "There has to be some difficulty on your part or it's not a good wager."

There were a few more complaints but Reed stepped in.

"No, he's right. He's risking having to do something he doesn't like and shelling out the dough for drinks, so we lot should do be ready to do our bit."

"What if we don't all make that grade?" Mary asked. "What do you want in return, Professor?"

Nigel thought about it for a moment and slowly grinned. "You all have to come dressed as an historical figure the first class back after the holidays."

Adrian laughed. "That's not bad, most of us would be up for that now…"

"I'm not finished," Nigel warned and watched trepidation mar his student's faces. "Whoever you come as, you must be prepared with a full biography to answer any questions I have for you."

They gaped at him in astonishment.

"When are we going to get time to do that?"

"Can we have notes?"

"Absolutely not. You must speak as if you're the true character and you cannot duplicate, so make sure you talk to each other on your selections." He slid some of the paperwork on his desk into his briefcase, "And, anyone who isn't fully prepared has to help Mr. Pike after school with his duties for a week."

"The caretaker?"

"That's inhuman!"

Nigel shrugged. "Or we could forget the wager altogether?"

"No!" Reed refused and waved his hands to quiet the others. "Okay, we'll do all it." He held out his hand. "Deal?"

Nigel shook the young man's hand and nodded. "Deal it is, then."

The students moved almost in unison towards the lower platform doors.

"Have a good weekend Mr. B!"

Nigel waved. "You too, Nick," he returned and smiled at two of his female students who placed apples on his desk. "Thank you, Judy, Mary." he offered. "Enjoy your weekend, but do your homework."

"We can't do both, Professor!" Judy laughed.

"See you Monday," Mary smiled, enticingly.

"I'll be here."

The two sighed, obviously smitten and then giggled their way up through the seats and to the back doors. Within a few moments the classroom was silent and Nigel sighed, almost in relief.

He stretched his back, massaged his neck for a few seconds and then moved to erase the black board, everything but the timeline for Cesar. He returned to his desk, slid his laptop into his case and secured it, then grabbed his long coat off the back of his chair and flicked the light switch on the wall, darkening the room dramatically, so that only the emergency isle lights remained on.

He was halfway up when he paused to pick up a scarf left by one of his students. He sniffed it. "Judy, Judy, Judy," he murmured in his best Cary Grant. "Always leaving things behind." He slid the scarf into a pocket on his briefcase and continued upwards.

"You're good with your students."

Nigel froze, his grip on his briefcase tightened. "Sydney?" He had to be dreaming, but he wasn't. There she was, walking down the isle of seats towards him. "Um…Where did you come from?"

"My mother originally."

He started at her as she drew closer and was appalled when he stepped back.

Sydney tried to ignore his reaction. She didn't blame him for being wary, especially considering how hurt he must be. "How are you, Nigel?"

"Fine." He was angry, suddenly. Angry that she just showed up and hadn't given him any warning or time to prepare. Did she think that everything would be the same between them? Didn't she understand that he needed some time? "It… I really have to go. I have a meeting to attend."

"Oh." Sydney felt the slap as if it had made actual contact with her skin.

She hurried to catch up with him. What had she expected, that he would throw himself into her arms and thank her for coming? She'd hurt him and despite his promise that they remain friends, she couldn't expect things to be normal between them, not now.

She followed him through the classroom doors and into the hallway. "Nigel, I…I understand if you're not…ready to see me yet," she said as she matched his stride. "But I really need to talk to you."

He shook his head. Not ready? He might never be ready. He knew that her wedding had been three weeks ago, she'd probably spent that time on her honeymoon with Alan. He cringed.

"Nigel, please?"

He paused at the stairway going down, then moved aside for students coming up. She looked so miserable, so hesitant. He wasn't used to a shy Sydney Fox, it didn't suit her, and just like that he knew that he wouldn't allow himself to be responsible for such a change.

"I really do have a meeting," he insisted and started down the stairs, once the way was clear.

Sydney kept after him. "What about after your meeting?"

"Have a good weekend, Professor Bailey," two young women offered as they passed him on the stairs.

Nigel nodded to them and continued down, without responding to Sydney. There were too many students rushing too and fro, many of them called greetings to him as they passed.

Sydney stayed with him until they were on the main floor and then he turned toward the teacher's office. "Nigel, please?"

His hand paused at the door and his head lowered, struggling with a response. "I'll have some time after," he said quietly, staring at the door rather than at her. "There's a pub across from the university, O'Leary's. I'll meet you there in an hour."

Sydney resisted the urge to throw her arms around him as the cramp in her stomach eased. "Thank you, Nigel."

He nodded and stepped inside the office, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Sydney sipped her second glass of wine and stared at the front door to the pub. She'd been there twenty minutes already and was beginning to suspect that Nigel was not coming. She wasn't used to being stood up, and part of her wanted to say the hell with him and leave, but she couldn't.

She came here for a reason and neither of them would be able to move forward until they had talked. So she sat and tried to ignore the noise of the university students yammering around her and stared at the front door of the pub, waiting.

Had she made a mistake? Perhaps Nigel no longer felt the same for her? What if Alan had been right and it had just been the emotion and trauma of the week before that had caused Nigel to change his feelings? What if she had hurt him so badly that he would never consider any kind of relationship with her now?

It was obvious that she had taken him by surprise, and that he was not happy to see her. She could understand and accept that, but she couldn't believe that he would be so disrespectful as to leave her sitting here, alone, waiting for him. No matter how hurt he might be, it just wasn't the kind of person he was.

Finally, she spotted him coming into the pub. His eyes scanned the room and spotted her almost instantly, for she had settled at the table nearest the door. He indicated a move to the back of the room on the other side and without waiting for her, he started away.

Sydney picked up her coat, purse and wine and followed, watching as he waved to some of his students, then stopped at a table and pulled out the scarf. The blonde grinned at him and accepted it happily. Nigel then continued beyond a partial wall and finally settled in a step-up corner booth. He tossed his coat to the inside of the booth and set his briefcase on the floor as Sydney reached him.

"Here ya go, luv," A rotund, well endowed, older barmaid said as she set a pint of lager on the table. "Usual for you, then?"

He nodded and settled into the seat across from Sydney. "Did you want something to eat?"

"Oh…" Food was the last thing on her mind, but it would give them more time together. "Whatever he's having is fine, thanks."

"Two bangers and mash, coming up." She indicated Sydney's wine glass. "Top that up for you, then, luv?"

"No, no that's okay."

She nodded and walked away.

It was quieter in the back; a good deal of the noise was filtered by the partial wall that stood between them and the front of the house. The silence from Nigel particularly was deafening and Sydney was suddenly too nervous to speak.

Nigel took a sip of his beer and set it back on the table, choosing to look at the glass rather than Sydney.

Why was she here? It had only been a couple months, maybe three? He wanted to ask why she wasn't off on her honeymoon with Alan. He wanted to ask her if she had received the manifest from the Gural Nataz, but Derek had already told him that she had. He wanted to ask her if she would give him another chance.

Sydney stared at Nigel then lowered her eyes to her glass when he refused to meet her gaze. She didn't know where to start, how to begin. She didn't want there to be any kind of misunderstandings and yet, she was so afraid he would reject her. What a laugh! Sydney Fox finally found something she was actually afraid of.

"How is your father?" Nigel asked to start the conversation.

Part of him, the part that housed his pride wanted to toss some bills on the table, mutter some crushing rebuke and saunter off into the night, but the other part, the part that loved her couldn't help but wonder why she was here and what she had to say.

Sydney blinked; she hadn't expected him to open with that. "He…he's good. Really good. He's retiring finally and…He upgraded his houseboat so he and Jenny are going to sail around for a few years and enjoy themselves."

Nigel nodded, but he still couldn't look her in the eye. He was afraid he would see pity in them, pity because she would see in his eyes how much he still loved her and she belonged to another man. "I'm sure they'll enjoy it."

"Yes. Jenny worked hard on Dad to get him to retire, he's always worked you know and so…" She paused as she thought how much she was like her father; both were work-a-holics. "Well, it will be a big change for him."

"Jenny will make it worth his while," Nigel decided as he smiled a little thinking about the buxom blonde bombshell that spoke four languages and was surprisingly perceptive about people. "They're a good match."

Sydney had to agree. While she had not been initially pleased that her father was marrying 'Barbie' she had grown to love Jenny. Perhaps not as a step-mother, more of a sister, but her father was okay with that too. Jenny never pressed Sydney to be anything but friends and she certainly never tried to judge anything for her.

"How's Preston?" she asked, desperate to keep the conversation going but unwilling to broach the reason she was here just yet.

Nigel shrugged and took another swig of beer. "No idea."

She knew that the brothers hadn't been especially close, but she would have thought that changed once he moved back to England. "You…don't talk to him?"

"He met a woman from South Africa and her father offered him a position with her father's company there. I get a post card now and then, but I tend to toss them in the bin without even reading them."

"Nigel!" she admonished, and yet she couldn't help but smile.

He smirked and shrugged. "They really aren't worth reading." He sat back as the waitress arrived with their order. "Thanks Bea."

"Anything for you, luv," she assured and toddled off.

They sat in silence again as they sampled their meals and Sydney tried not to scream in frustration. She pushed the meat around on her plate and desperately tried to think of a way to broach the subject of why she was here. Nigel was not being as receptive as she had hoped and she blamed her own arrogance for assuming he would be.

"Derek came to see me," she blurted, for lack of anything else.

"I know," Nigel replied as he salted his food. "He told me."

Sydney felt a sting of jealousy. "So, what you guys are best friends now?"

"Sorry, that's need to know."

She gaped at him. He hadn't even bothered to look her in the eye when he'd said it, just continued to eat. Was he trying to make a joke or was he really not going to tell her? A small part of her shriveled up at the idea that he would keep secrets from her.

"So…how did you and he defeat the Gural Nataz, or is that need to know too?"

Nigel finally lifted his gaze to hers. "Don't do that, Sydney."

"Do what? Ask a question?" She knew she was on the defensive, she knew she should stop before she said something she regretted and yet she couldn't. "Am I not allowed to ask questions or just not about your best buddy Derek?"

She'd sacrificed a hell of a lot to be sitting across from him, flew halfway around the world on only a few hours sleep. She hadn't even booked a hotel, just left her bags at an airport locker and went straight to find him. He could at least have the decency to say he missed her!

Nigel didn't get angry or offended, he didn't get embarrassed or frustrated. Instead, he set his knife and fork down, pulled his napkin off his lap and set it on the table and rose. "When you're ready to say what you came here for, I'll be at my flat."

He grabbed his coat and briefcase, tossed some money on the table and walked out.

Sydney stared after him, shocked and then lowered her head to her hands, ashamed. Well, what had she expected? Nigel wasn't an endless well of patience and she had been dancing around the subject. She'd bordered picking a fight with him rather than tell the real reason she was here. Rather than admit the mistakes she had made.

She pushed her plate away with disgust. She wasn't ready to talk to him, not about what was important. She needed to think some more. She needed to gather her courage, and the very idea that she had to do that was Nigel only made matters worse.

She eyed the barmaid and signaled. She needed to get drunk.


	28. Drunk and Disorderly

**_DISCLAIMER_**_: RH not mine. Well, here it is...just a short one leading up to what may possibly be the last chapter I am putting two chapters up at once, but please review each of them..because I am just so needy. Thank you :)_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT**

Nigel entered the police station and walked up to the desk Sergeant. "I'm here to see Sydney Fox," he stated, still unable to believe that this was happening.

When Bea had called him from the pub to say that his 'lady friend' had punched out two of her regulars and was being arrested for drunk and disorderly he was sure she'd been having him on.

So, he'd made his way down to the station, prepared to post whatever bail, assuming they would give her bail, to get Sydney out of her predicament. A very tiny part of him had thought to let her spend the night in jail, teach her to get pissed in a public place, but she had taken care of him when he had been less than steady on his feet so he had to do the same for her. Although, he had never been arrested.

"Ah, she's yours then?" The Sergeant looked Nigel over. "You sure you want her back?"

Nigel flushed and sighed. What in God's name had Sydney done? "It isn't a question of want," he admitted and watched the Sergeant chuckle, then call to one of his officers.

"Well, the two chaps she flattened aren't pressing charges, afraid to admit they got beat up by a woman, if you ask me." He scribbled something on his book and handed it to Nigel. "Sign here and we can release her."

Nigel signed, and then followed the uniform Bobby to the back and downstairs where the cells were.

"We had to put her in with the men," the young man was saying. "She kept accusing the women of trying to steal some guy from her and causing fights."

Again Nigel flushed as they passed several general cells, two filled with women in all manner of garb; high society, prostitutes, biker chicks and punk rockers. They stopped at one with a similar variety of men, and noticed that the men all sat to the left side of the cell, away from the single woman on the other side. Two of them had bleeding noses.

"What's happened here, now?" the bobby asked and the men just pointed at Sydney who jumped up at the first sight of Nigel.

"Nigel! Oh Thank God! This is all a mistake and…" She growled and swung around as one of the men, in his stupidity, tried to sneak up behind her. She kicked him across the cell. "Anyone else?"

"Stop it, Sydney!" Nigel ordered as the officer opened the cell. "You're in enough bloody trouble."

"They started it!" Sydney threw her arms around Nigel. "I'm so glad you're here!"

"That little pip-squeak is your man?" one biker guffawed. "I've seen more meat on Good Friday!"

Sydney released Nigel and spun around. "You're about to lose your meat if you…"

"Oy!" Nigel instantly caught her arm, but not before the large instigator stumbled back from her. "Knock it off!" He'd never seen Sydney like this and he was in no mood to deal with it. He pulled her out of the cell. "You're free so let's not push it."

The bobby locked up the cell and seemed grateful to be rid of her. "Get her out of here before she starts a riot."

"I'm very sorry," Nigel offered as he kept hold of Sydney's hand to pull her away. "She's not usually like this."

As they passed the women's cell, many of them flocked towards the bars.

"Is that him. then?"

"Oooh, he's a nice one!"

"He must be great in bed!"

"Look he's blushing!"

Sydney kept one hand in Nigel's and suddenly swung to the bars with her other fist raised. "Back off, bitches!" she growled. "He's mine!"

Several of the women reared back so fast from their cage they stumbled over each other.

"Sydney!" Nigel scolded, embarrassed beyond reason. "God, just shut it till we get out of here, can't you?" He yanked her away and practically shoved her up the stairs, but not before hearing the women's cat calls and the chuckles from the bobby behind them.

"I don't want to see her in here again," the desk Sergeant warned as he handed over the bag with Sydney's belongings and watched her sign for them. "Understood?"

"You won't!" Nigel assured as he pulled Sydney outside and waved down a cab. "Sydney, stop it!" She was all over him, clinging to his arm, nuzzling his neck. She reeked of liquor and would be sorry in the morning.

"Mmmm, you smell good, Nigel."

"You don't!" he snapped. He was lying of course, she smelled wonderful and he had always been a fan of her perfume, but he was too furious at having been called away from home to get her out of jail. "Keep your bloody hands to yourself, Sydney. I mean it, now!"

He had to fight to keep her lips off him the entire ride in the taxi, much to the driver's amusement. When they arrived at his flat he paid the driver and unlocked his door.

"I should have dropped you at a hotel, only you'd probably assault someone else!"

As he closed the door, Sydney pinned him against it with her body and ravished his lips. His body and heart ached for her and he had to force himself to push her away. "Stop!"

Sydney grinned. "Let's make love, not war," she murmured and again dove for his mouth.

God! She tasted of sweet wine and strawberries and he found himself responding, despite his wish to do otherwise. He'd missed her, missed her so much. He had dreamed of having her, like this, with her passion in full flame, her body pressed against his. All good intentions fled and he was lost.

Sydney's hands pulled apart his coat and slid up inside his sweater and undershirt, caressing the incredibly soft skin beneath. She moaned into his mouth, demanding he touch her and that was when Nigel's sense returned.

He broke away from her, gasping for breath and, not so gently, pushed her away from him. Sydney was drunk! She wasn't responsible for what she was doing. And then another thought hit him. Sydney was married!

Sydney, already unsteady from the alcohol in her system stumbled against the stairs. "What's wrong?" she whispered. "Don't you want me?"

Nigel tried to catch his breath and calm the erratic pounding of his heart. His loins ached so much it physically hurt and it was a job to get his mind to focus. "We…we can't, Sydney." God, she looked so tempting with her lips swollen from their kisses, her large doe-like eyes beseeching him.

He moved to help her up, and then pulled back. If he touched her he'd be lost again. "I'm going up." He climbed past her and took the stairs to his main floor two at a time.

Sydney grinned and scrambled up the stairs after him. "I love it when you play hard to get!" she called as she reached the top. "Oh, Nigel? I know you're here."

"Up here!" he called from his bedroom area.

Sydney clapped her hands together. "Now you're talkin'!" she laughed and ran up the steps. "I'm ready when you are."

She scowled when she saw no sign of him, but then spotted the light on in the bathroom. Her smile was feral as she pulled off her boots, sweater, undershirt and slacks, leaving a trail of clothing across the bedroom. She wouldn't mind a little lathering up before the main event!

In just a pair of lace bra and panties, she tiptoed over to the open door. She jumped inside. "Gotc…Huh?"

A shove from behind had her tumbling into the shower stall and before she could react freezing cold water was assaulting her from head to toe and the doors were pushed closed.

She screamed. "Nigel!" she tried to turn off the faucet but the damn thing was on a chain which had been slipped over the six feet doors to the outside of the shower. She screamed again at the cold. "It's f...f…freezing! Let me o…out!" She hated the cold and pounded on the doors but they didn't budge. "Nigel!"

Nigel tried to hold back his laughter as he leaned against the shower doors. He knew that with Sydney in the state she was in nothing short of jumping out of his flat window was going to keep her from ravaging him and he was in no shape to stop her if she really wanted to make a go of it. This was the only way he could think of to cool her down.

He leaned his head against the doors, half wishing he were in there with her to calm his own libido. "Are you going to behave?" he demanded.

"Y…yes!" Sydney beat on the doors twice more before the shock of the water finally doused her arousal and started to clear her head. "Okay! Okay, I'm sorry…p…please let me…out!"

Nigel pulled on the string to stop the water, grabbed a towel from the rack and moved away from the doors. "If you try to hurt me, I will bring you back where I found you and let you spend the night in jail," he warned as he pulled the doors open.

Sydney stood there shivering and miserable, drenched from head to toe, her hair half over her face, her arms wrapped around herself. "You a…a…asshole."

Nigel had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling as he backed up to the doorway and tossed her a towel. "I'll get you something to wear."

Sydney pulled away her wet undergarments with some difficulty, then wrapped the towel around her body and dropped down on the floor. Her head was spinning and she felt like she was going to be ill.

She'd drunk too much, far more than she should have and her brain couldn't focus on any one thing. Suddenly she needed to find Nigel. She needed to apologize for…for whatever she did. For everything she'd ever done. Didn't he understand she just wanted to say she was sorry? Why couldn't he understand that?

"Nigel?" she moaned as she tried to stand again and realized her legs wouldn't hold her. "Nigel, please. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She shook her head. "I'm no good at this. Relationships…No good at all. I screw everything up…"

She was appalled when a lump formed in her throat and tears pricked at her eyes. Oh no! No, she didn't want to… "Cry? I can't cry…babies cry. Why am I crying?" She looked up as she leaned her head against the wall and pulled her knees into her chest. Nigel hadn't returned.

"Nigel? Please don't leave me…. Please! I deserve it, everybody leaves, but you can't…you can't leave. You're…" She squeezed her eyes shut and dropped her head as sobs racked her body. "Nigel…my Nigel. So stupid. I'm so stupid. Please…please don't…don't give up…on me…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Sydney felt a pair of comforting hands on her bare arms and as she opened her eyes she was being helped to her feet. "Nigel," she sobbed staring into his eyes. "You came back." She put her arms around him and held on tight. "Don't leave me. Please don't leave me."

Nigel closed his eyes and held her, wondered if her shivering was from the cold or something else. "Hush now. You're fine. Everything's fine." Well, perhaps not everything. He was still in pain, but his cold shower would have to wait.

"Don't leave…please don't…leave."

"I'm not going anywhere." He drew back and wiped at the tears on her cheeks. He knew it was mostly the alcohol talking, but it was still breaking his heart to see her like this. "Come on, let's get you to bed. You'll feel better after you sleep it off."

"Will you stay with me?" she whimpered as he led her back into his bedroom. "You won't leave me. Please don't leave me, Nigel. I can't do it without you."

"Ssssh." He'd already pulled back the covers on the bed and the X-Files T-shirt was across it. "Let's get this on you."

Sydney didn't hesitate, she dropped her towel and held her arms up for Nigel to pull the shirt over her. "I'm cold!"

"I know, I'm sorry." He stared into her eyes as he slid her arms into the shirt and kept them on her eyes, despite his desperate wish to lower them and see her naked flesh. "There. All dressed." He started to move away to gather her clothes from the bathroom but she caught his arm.

"No!" she pleaded. "Don't go away, please. I was wrong, Nigel. I was wrong about everything. Please tell me we're okay? Please tell me I didn't screw us up too?"

"We're fine, Syd." He gently sat her on the bed and pulled her legs up, trying not to think too much about the softness of her bare skin. "Come on, in the bed and cover up."

"Don't leave!"

"I'm not going anywhere." He repeated and peered down at her. He wished with all his heart that her words were true and not alcoholic delirium. "I've got you, Syd."

"You've got me. It's okay now." Sydney visibly relaxed. "Nigel's got me."

His words seemed to soothe her and she went willingly when he gently pushed her sideways to lie on the pillow. "Sleep, Syd. It will do you good." He pulled the covers up around her as she reached for his hand.

"I need you, Nigel."

His heart swelled and shattered in the same instant. He squeezed her hand. "I know," he croaked, startled at the emotion that threatened to overtake him. "I know you do."

How had he ever doubted her needing him, especially when he needed her just as much? In that moment, he knew that they would be okay, because in the end, they were part of each other. They belonged together, perhaps not as lovers, but most assuredly as friends and soul mates.

How could he have left her? If only he had stayed. If only he had seen through her tough exterior to the fear that stood behind it. She had never wanted him to leave, and yet she had sacrificed what she wanted for his future, because she believed in him. Sydney had always believed in him.

"Nigel!"

"Go to sleep, Sydney."

Sydney's eyes were already starting to droop, but she felt there was more to say; more she had to tell him. "Love you," she murmured.

"Likewise," he whispered and wished to God hearing those words weren't like a knife to his chest. She did love him, just not the way he loved her. He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Sleep, luv."

He watched her until her breathing grew even enough to confirm that she was asleep, then he grabbed his robe, a set of pajamas and returned to the bathroom. He set her underwear on the towel rack to dry, tried not to linger with them, then stepped into the shower, pulled the string over to the inside and set the cold water on himself.

He didn't turn switch it to warm until he was almost gasping, making sure that any hint of arousal had been battered back. He washed his hair and body, since he was in there, and then rinsed off.

He quickly dried off, pulled on his pajamas and robe and stepped back into his bedroom. Sydney had not moved and the desire to climb into the bed next to her was strong, but was a married woman now and he had to treat her as such.

He shut his eyes quickly when he felt the insistent pounding in his head that warned of an oncoming emotional upheaval. No. He would not go there again. He would not allow himself to feel that utter despair of losing her. He'd spent enough hours buried looking for release at the bottom of a liquor bottle and throwing angry, self-pity tantrums the days after she had left. It had taken all his resources to pull himself together again.

He waited until he'd regained control and then opened his eyes to linger on her form. He hadn't lost her, not really, since he never really had her. She'd given him a chance and that was what he had asked for, but in the end she had chosen Alan and he couldn't blame her for that.

Yes they were attracted to each other; a certain amount of sexual tension had always been between them, lurking just beneath the surface. When he had gotten past his anger and upset at her not returning his feelings, he realized that she couldn't. When he searched for the real reasons for her leaving him, they had been obvious.

He knew that Sydney depended on him to be the one constant in her life. Choosing him as a lover would have upset that balance and it would have taken something away from both of them that they couldn't find anywhere else.

He still loved her, probably always would, but he could be content with just her friendship; he would have to be, wouldn't he? He couldn't force her to love him as he loved her and he wouldn't anyway; that wasn't what you did to someone you cared about.

It hurt, thinking about her starting a life with Alan, more than it did whenever he thought of her and her other boyfriends, but he was sure he would get over it. Not right away, but eventually. A couple of years…a decade or two maybe and he'd almost be back to normal.

He smirked at his own defeatism and started downstairs. Sydney was here now and that was what mattered. She came here for a reason and he would listen to what she had to say, then he would tell her that he would still be there for her; because that was what friends did.


	29. What Will Be Will Be

_**Disclaimer**__: RH not mine-Well, here it is...Will they or won't they? Will Sydney tell Nigel that she wants to be his friend and wants his support in her marriage to Alan? Will Nigel be willing to listen to what she has to say? Will this story EVER END?_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE**

Sydney awoke the following morning feeling as if she had spent the week playing against the entire Notre Dame football team. Her head felt three sizes too big for her body and her mouth was as dry as the Sahara.

She moaned and laughed at the same time at her own stupidity. She remembered most of what she had done, although she felt disconnected from her actions. She recalled those two men trying to pick her up at the bar, and her putting and end to it after their insistence.

She had just wanted to be alone and they were bothering her, so naturally she gave them something else to be focused on, such as how they were going to stop the bleeding after she defended her own honor. Then there was something about police, she remembered swinging at one of them as well.

She remembered being arrested and Nigel bringing her back to his apartment, but she wasn't sure how they got here, or what happened once they were here. She knew better than to drink, she went on the defensive whenever she did and became unreasonable and paranoid.

Slowly she sat up and looked down at the T-shirt she was wearing. How in the world? She looked around and realized that she was in Nigel's bed, which immediately concerned her as to what might have happened that she didn't remember.

Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she wondered why it felt stringy and damp. She'd have to wash it and…She groaned again. Her suitcase was still in a locker at the airport! She looked around for her satchel and closed her eyes in relief when she saw it on the armchair by the window. At least she had a toothbrush and a change of underwear.

Carefully, she stood and winced as the change in direction immediately started her head pounding again. God! What was she thinking drinking a bottle of wine and another of Jack Daniels?

She stumbled to the chair, reached for her bag and dumped it out in the chair, in too much pain to even consider rummaging through it. She found her bottle of extra-strength Tylenol, her toothbrush and a hairbrush and elastic band.

"Good enough," she muttered and weaved into the bathroom. She was appalled at her reflection, and rather than study it too critically she just splashed water on her face, pulled her hair into a pony-tail and changed her underwear. Nigel had seen her without makeup before, he wouldn't care.

She spotted her bra and panties hanging over the towel rack and her eyes widened. What the hell had happened last night? She pulled them down, they were stiff and cold but she pulled the bra on anyway and shivered.

She brushed her teeth, took three Tylenol with a mouthful of water and stepped out of the bathroom. This wasn't exactly going as she had hoped and she could only pray that Nigel would be willing to forgive her behavior and listen this morning to what she had to say.

Tossing everything back into her satchel she spotted her clothes from yesterday folded and lying upon Nigel's bureau, her boots stood beside it on the floor. She quickly dressed then headed to the main level.

Everything was quiet and she wondered if Nigel had gone out. Well, if he had she would just sit here and wait for him. No wait, she had to get her clothes. She'd write him a note and dash out in case he came back before she did.

She headed for Nigel's office, in search of pen and paper and stopped abruptly when she found him sound asleep on the daybed with the covers tucked up to his chin, as if he'd gotten cold in the night.

Smiling, she tip-toed past him and picked up a legal pad off the desk and snatched a pen from his cup-holder, pausing for a moment to caress his union jack flag. She'd write him a quick note, run out and get her case, and be back in no time.

As she started passed the bed again, his hand shot out and caught her wrist.

"Where are you going?"

"God, Nigel!" She had dropped the materials from the desk and put her hand to her heart. "I thought you were asleep."

"Where are you going?" he asked again as he became more awake.

"I…I was just going to run out and get my bags." She crouched and picked up the pad and pen. "I was leaving you a note."

"Don't go, Sydney," he requested quietly.

Sydney realized that his plea came from a fear that she would leave again. Despite his earlier aloofness, he did want her here.

"I won't be long, I promise." She squeezed his hand. "I came to see you straight from the airport, so I left my bags in a locker there. I need to get them and then book into a hotel."

"You don't need a hotel."

She hadn't wanted to presume, but was relieved that he wanted her to stay. "I still need my clothes."

He stared at her for the longest time, thinking again about last night. It seemed to take him forever to drift off, his mind full of thoughts about himself and Sydney and how to make things between them right again.

He didn't want to say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing and in an odd sense he felt as if he was back at the beginning with her again, confused, unsure and scared of disappointing her. "I can…um…Would…do you want company?"

It hurt her to see him so shy with her, after all they had been through together, but she supposed that he had reasons to be hesitant and withdrawn. "I'd like that, Nigel."

He tossed back the covers. "I…I'll just be a minute," he said and moved past her to climb the stairs to his room.

"Take your time!" she called out as she fetched her jacket and his as well.

Nigel returned a few minutes later, dressed in black jeans, and a deep green crew-neck pullover. "Um…did you want to take the underground or…or a taxi?"

"A taxi." She paused and looked him over. "Y'know, I don't think I have ever seen you in jeans." When he flushed she had to put a stop to it. What she used to enjoy and found endearing she knew was hurting him now. "Nigel…" She put her arms around him. "I'm so sorry."

Nigel did not return the embrace; instead his arms remained at his side. He deliberately misunderstood her. "That I'm wearing jeans?"

She pulled back and met his gaze, disappointed that he couldn't be honest, that he was avoiding the issue. "Nigel."

He lowered his gaze and stepped back. He thought he could do it. He'd worked himself up thinking he could slip back into that role of just her friend and partner, but it wasn't as easy as he told himself it would be.

"I'm trying, Sydney. I…I can't…" Didn't she understand how hard it was to face her when she knew his deepest feelings? Couldn't she see how difficult just being friends was going to be for him? "I'm trying."

"Why do you think you have to try?" she asked. "Why can't you just…be yourself? Nothing's changed, Nigel."

He looked at her, betrayed. "Everything has changed, Sydney!" He lowered his gaze immediately. "I…I'm sorry. I…I didn't mean to snap." He turned around and hit the wall, frustrated. "Just go. Go do…whatever you have to do."

Sydney regarded him for a long moment, and then put her hand on his shoulder. "Let's go for a walk first," she suggested. They needed to clear the air and what better way to do it than outside on a brisk winter's day. Granted, she wasn't fond of the cold, but perhaps she needed it right now, to help clear her head.

"Syd…you…you're my best friend," he admitted and ran his hand through his hair. "I've always thought of you as…as that and…and then…" He shook his head. "I just…I need some time to get back to that…to stop thinking of you as…I don't want to mess this up again."

She reached for his hand. "Come on, let's walk. We both need it."

He followed her, because that was what he always did. He locked up his flat and they started down the street.

"Do you know why my underwear was hanging on your towel rack?" she asked suddenly.

He started and bit his lip to keep from smiling at the vision of her wringing wet. "You had a shower."

"With my clothes on?"

"Not all of them."

"Nigel…did we…"

"No!" he quickly denied and because he was a gentleman he also refrained from bringing up her behavior. "Of course not!"

She nodded and they continued to walk, gathering her courage. "You're my best friend too, Nigel."

"I know that."

"Do you?" She stopped and turned to him. "Do you understand that you are the person I am closest to in the entire world? Even closer than my dad?"

Nigel stared at her, obviously startled, but he couldn't deny that he felt the same. "Yes," he admitted softly. "Likewise, Syd."

She gazed into his eyes and witnessed the truth in his eyes, his belief in the strength of their friendship shone there and she knew then that no matter what happened, he would always be there for her. Nothing she did, not her anger, her stupidly, not marriage to Alan or…as he was so fond of saying…a battalion of Gural Nataz armed to the teeth would chase him away.

She paused as she realized the real significance of what he and Derek had done in destroying the Gural Nataz threat and her heart filled almost to capacity. He had done that for her, and for no one else. He had taken on an international organization of murderers and thieves…to keep her safe.

"I…Let's walk because I have to tell you something important."

"Oh God." Nigel matched her pace with some trepidation. He thought he was ready for whatever she had to say but the fear of not knowing what it was overtaking his courage.

Sydney smirked. "Do you need a moment?"

He shook his head. What would a moment matter when his imagination was going to be far worse then anything she could actually say, maybe. "No. No, I'm just…" He took a deep breath. "I've thought about you so much these past few months, Sydney and…I…I thought of you coming back…replayed so many scenarios in my head of what you might say and…I just…"

"You're afraid I'm going to say something that will hurt you again?"

"No. Yes…God, I don't know." He dropped down on a bench. "I don't think I could be hurt beyond how I felt when you left." He lifted his eyes to hers. "You broke my heart to pieces, Sydney."

Sydney felt as if her soul was ripped out of her body and she dully dropped down next to him. "I…" Sorry didn't cover it, an apology wouldn't begin to make up for the hurt she had caused. "Nigel, I…I didn't mean…" What else could she say? "I'm so sorry."

"No, no," he dismissed, looked away and rubbed at his head, which again had started to ache. "You…I know you didn't mean…Syd, you had to do what was…what was right for you." He shook his head. "I wouldn't have wanted you to stay if you weren't going to be happy."

"Nigel, I…" Even now, deep in his own misery he was still thinking of her. "Oh, Nigel."

They sat there for a few minutes and then Nigel rose, determined. "Right then, let's get on with this walk, shall we?"

Sydney rose reluctantly and fell in step beside him."

"Carry on, forget my moment of trepidation. I'm ready now so have at it."

She almost smiled at his tenacity. "Okay, well…" Where did she start? At the beginning she supposed. "Nigel, I did something I am not very proud of.. ."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Sydney."

"I know, but this one…this one was…" She shook her head. "You'll be so ashamed of me."

Nigel stopped walking and turned to catch her from going past him. "Sydney." He met her gaze. "I would never be ashamed of you."

"You would for this…"

"Look at me," he insisted and waited until she lifted her gaze to his. "Never."

His words warmed her, but she still needed to keep walking, keep moving or her courage would flee. She took a deep breath. "I had a one night stand, about a year after you left."

"That's hardly anything to be ashamed of…"

"I…I wasn't careful," she replied shoved her hands in her pockets. "I got pregnant."

Again Nigel drew to a halt, abruptly. "You…you have a child?"

"No." Sydney kept walking and bit her lip as that sharp, familiar pain pierced her stomach. Sympathy pains the doctor had warned her, she would have them time to time; a sign of grief. "I… I wasn't ready, Nigel. Not for that and I couldn't even remember the name of the fellow that I…"

Nigel shook off his shock, a thousand questions forming in his head, but all he said was. "You must have been terrified."

Sydney almost cried from his understanding. No one else got her the way Nigel did. No one else knew just what to say to make things better.

"I was terrified," she admitted. "I was having a child and… I would eventually have to tell him or her how…how they were conceived. I couldn't tell them who their father was, I couldn't…" She put her hands over her face. "I'd have to see the look in their eyes when they learned their mother was a…a…"

"No!" Nigel caught her again and turned her to face him. "You are not…that."

"You thought it!" she muttered miserably. "I know you thought it every time we ran into one of my ex's. I know you thought…"

"Sydney, no! You're a beautiful desirable woman, for God's sake! I certainly didn't expect you to live like a nun!"

"Really?" she asked lifting her eyes, unshed tears glittering behind them. "Not even…Not even with François…"

"Not even," he assured. "So forget that nonsense."

She gathered her courage again. It helped that, as they started walking, Nigel slipped his hand into hers. "I wasn't ready and I guess that made me a coward, but I knew that I had to…to end it."

"You had an abortion?"

"I couldn't do it at home, too many people might find out about it and then Cate arrived and I ended up telling her and she…She said she knew someone."

"So…Cate took you somewhere where no one knew you?"

"Yes. But then, I changed my mind when we got to the clinic. I thought..." She had to stop again and collect herself. Nigel squeezed her hand for support and on they walked. "I thought, I didn't have the right to take away a life. I hate killing of any kind and…and it wasn't fair to not at least give the baby a chance."

Nigel tried to hide his relief, he didn't agree with abortion, but in the end, it was the woman's body. "So…you kept it?"

"I had to try," she reasoned. "I'd been through worse, right? I couldn't just give up and…and there was always adoption." Sydney waited a long moment before speaking again and Nigel did not rush her. "Cate got a call about someone Interpol had a bulletin out on and I agreed to go and lend her a hand. She said it would be a routine arrest."

"But it wasn't?" Nothing was ever routine with Cate, and Nigel felt a sick feeling rise up inside and twist at his gut.

"No." Sydney had to stop again and she tried to pull her hand away from his but Nigel wouldn't let her, and instead he caught her other hand as well.

His will to hang on, to support her was the push she needed to look him in the eye again. "They…the guy was on meth. He took out the first two agents on the scene along with a police officer." She wet her lip as the memories flooded back to her. "He came at me Nigel, and…and I…I just reacted."

Nigel's stomach cramps increased and his heart started pounding so loudly he was sure that she would hear it. He didn't want to know the rest, didn't want to and yet…he had to. "Sydney…."

"Cate had to shoot him, but before that he…he hurt me, Nigel. I gave it my best but…and then there was blood, so much blood that I thought I had been shot."

"Oh God..."

"I lost the baby." A lone tear slipped out and streaked down her cheek. "I lost him before he ever had a chance to be someone, because I was stupid and careless and…and afraid."

Nigel tried to digest what she was telling him. He was horrified that she had gone through such a trauma and had never told him. Part of him was hurt, but the other half just wanted to offer her comfort. "And so…" He tried to swallow the giant lump in his troat. "You blamed Cate?" It explained why she had almost attacked the agent the last time she had been here.

"And you."

"Me? Why me?"

"Because if…if you had been there you would never have let me go with Cate. You would have told me it was too dangerous and…and you would have made me see reason."

"Sydney!" He released her hands, beyond hurt. "You…you seem to think I have a great deal of influence over your decisions and I have no idea why. You always make your own decisions, and quite often mine as well."

Sydney shook her head. "I…know, but I blamed you anyway. I blamed you for not being there to back me up, or to talk me out of it or just to…" She threw up her hands. "I guess, I started thinking that if you had been there none of it would have happened. I wouldn't have been depressed over your leaving and picked up that guy at the bar. I wouldn't have gone home with him and gotten pregnant and I wouldn't even have considered…" She released a shaky sigh. "And then I blamed Cate for telling me it would be routine and for not foreseeing what happened."

Nigel regarded her, quietly. It was all so…Bizarre. "I'm sorry for your loss, and I'm sorry I left, but you can't keep holding that over my head. You pushed me to leave and then you distanced yourself. If you had said even once that you needed me back I would have been there. If you had called and told me of your…your condition I would have been on the first flight out!" He caught her arms as she was turning away from him. "Sydney, you have to know that I would never have let you go through such a thing alone?"

"I do," she agreed, miserably. "I do, but I was too proud and hurt to tell you, Nigel. I know this is all my own doing. I know I let my head rule over my heart and then my heart got revenge by causing me so much pain, but I couldn't seem to help it."

"Sydney…"

"I thought about calling you a thousand times, but then I thought, what could you do? You were here and I was…in the States and it wasn't really your problem and you…you could hardly keep it from happening and…and it was all my own fault and…You had your own life now and…God, I couldn't face you. I couldn't see that disapproval in your eyes."

"Disapproval?" he repeated, astounded. "My God, Sydney, don't you know me at all? Disapproval? I love you, you daft woman! Beyond anything that has happened recently I have loved you and have been your friend for over a decade." He rubbed at her arms. "Do you really think I would have abandoned you to face on such a tremendous choice on your own?"

His words both shamed and comforted her. How could she have been so blind? How could she have doubted him? She let her hurt and anger and then her private shame keep them from being together. "I…I…what would you have done?" she asked suddenly desperate to know what their life could have been, had she been reasonable and thinking clearly. "You have a life here, Nigel. You…I wasn't your responsibility…"

"Sydney, from the moment you threw that bloody spear at my head you've been my responsibility. You changed my life that day and I can't ever go back to the way I was. I don't care if we're not in the same country, or even on the same bloody planet I will always come to you when you need me, always."

"Oh, Nigel."

"I don't know what I could have done, but it would have been something and it would have meant you not facing this thing alone." He pushed her hair out of her eyes. "We've always managed to find a way through, right?"

"Not this time." She took a deep breath. "I can't meet your needs, Nigel."

"I don't understand…"

"The miscarriage, my injuries…I can't have children. Not ever."

Nigel stared at her misery and was filled with sympathy for her. "Oh, Syd."

"So, you see. We couldn't be together because I can't give you what you want…"

"What? What do you mean, what I want?"

"I saw you with those kids, Nigel. I saw you playing with Regan and how your face lit up when they placed the baby in your arms." She shook her head. "I knew then that I couldn't make you happy."

No! God, no! Had that been the reason she had left? She'd chosen Alan because he wouldn't expect children? He felt dizzy and reached for something to steady himself, a lamp post. "S…Sydney, p…please tell me you didn't…" He couldn't even form the words.

The very idea that he may have lost her because of such an assumption sickened him. He thought back to her last day with him, when they had been at his friend's house and suddenly she had looked as if she would be ill. Mother of Christ! Why hadn't he seen it? Why hadn't he pressed her to tell him what was wrong?

"Oh, what a bloody mess…"

"Nigel?" She put her hand on his arm, concerned; he'd lost all the color in his face. "What is it? What's wrong? Are you sick?" She wrapped an arm around him, helped him over to the raised concrete rail of a fountain and sat him upon it.

He might be ill, his stomach was clenching badly and he honestly felt like crying. "I…I can't…" He couldn't speak, could hardly breathe. He took several slow deep breaths, willing himself together. He wasn't going to make it and he felt tears sting his eyes. "I…I can't…"

Sydney crouched in front of him and cradled his face to meet her gaze. "Nigel, I'm sorry. I thought we could move past it, but if it means that much to you…"

He gripped bother her hands in his and pulled them away from him. "I…Can't… Have children, Sydney," he finally managed anguished.

Sydney grew still, almost fell over. "W…what?"

"Mum… and Dad went through a lot just to have us and their…their…issues run in our family. I can't… I couldn't get you p…pregnant even if I tried!"

Sydney gaped at him. "But you spoke before about having kids and…and you were so good with…"

"Adoption, Sydney!" He was suddenly so angry at the injustice of it all. "Why didn't you just tell me? Why didn't you give us a chance?" He stood up and stormed away from her. He was ready to break and he had to get away from her and the public and everything. It was all so foolishly surreal. She'd run back to Alan because of a stupid misconception and now he'd lost her for good.

"Nigel!" Sydney ran after him. "Nigel, please wait!"

"Go back to Alan, Sydney!" he cried and started to run, ashamed that it had come to this, but he couldn't face her. Not now. "Go back to your husband and leave me the bloody hell alone!"

"He's not my husband!"

Nigel halted so fast he almost ran into a woman carrying groceries. He slowly turned as Sydney caught up with him. "W…what?"

"We're not married" she repeated willing to do anything to remove that horrible agony in his eyes. "Alan and I…we…I couldn't go through with it." She caught and squeezed Nigel's hands, felt them tremble beneath her touch and all remaining doubt fled. "I couldn't marry Alan when I was in love with you."

Nigel's legs collapsed from the shock and shear relief of her words. "S…Sydney…"

Sydney dropped with him, uncaring that the ground was wet and dirty with snow and road grime, or that it would soak through her clothes. She threw her arms around his neck. "Oh, Nigel. I've been so stupid!" she rushed. "I was afraid of everything! I was afraid you wanted kids and I couldn't give them to you. I was afraid that if we took that next step and it didn't work it would ruin what we already had, God, I was so afraid to risk that!"

Nigel tried to lift his arms. He felt numb, his entire body refused to obey his command. Small wonder since his brain was on overload trying to process what Sydney had just confessed. She wasn't married. He didn't have to forget his feelings. He didn't have to swallow the pain of loving her. She loved him. She'd chosen him over Alan, He wasn't going to lose her!

Sydney held him tighter, wishing he would hug her back. "I was stupid to be afraid because it could never _not_ work with us, Nigel. We've always worked, since the beginning and…and I can't imagine my life without you. Being apart from you these past few years was agony and I was too stupid and proud to admit what it really was and how I really felt."

Nigel lifted his gaze to hers, his eyes searching for…something.

"You're the only person who has ever truly understood me!" Sydney insisted. We've already been through sickness and health, in good times and bad…" Still he did not speak. "Oh, Nigel. Please don't tell me I'm too late. I love you so much. Please don't tell me I've…"

Her words were stolen from her as Nigel captured her mouth in the most delicate, sensuous kiss she had ever experienced; leaving her dizzy beyond belief. Her body came alive, truly alive for the first time and while she had experienced amazing kisses before, none of them compared with this one.

The pair was totally oblivious to the cold or the people that were peering at them along the street, knee deep in snow on the sidewalk and locked in a passionate embrace. The sounds the sights of the city around them disappeared and there were only touch and love and happiness.

Sydney moaned into his mouth, snaked her fingers through his hair and opened wider to give him better access, but he slowly, reluctantly pulled back.

"Sydney."

The simple sound of her name in his voice, a voice now full of passion, wonder and deep, almost heartbreaking emotion was all Sydney could ever wish to hear. Nigel's arms wrapped around her so tightly that she thought he might break her in half, yet his body trembled in her embrace and as his cheek touched hers she felt the moisture and her arms squeezed all the tighter around him.

"Hey you two!" A bobby from across the street called suddenly. "Go find a privy for that sort of thing!"

Sydney laughed and rose on legs that were suddenly so shaky she was afraid she might fall over, and she hauled Nigel up as well. "Oh bugger off!" she cried as she hailed a taxi. "Haven't you ever been in love before?"

Several people chuckled as a cab stopped and they practically fell into the back seat. "Heathrow," Nigel requested and then captured Sydney's face in his hands, afraid if he released her for more than a few minutes she might disappear. "Sydney. Sydney."

He kissed her again, light, caressing butterfly kisses, then touched his forehead to hers. "I can't help thinking this is all a dream, and I'll wake up and find myself back in my flat, alone."

Sydney pinched him, hard on the ass.

"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?"

She grinned and caressed the injured area. "See, no dream."

"Hell of a way to tell me."

"Awww…want me to kiss it better?"

"I've a better use for those perfect lips, Ms. Fox," he assured and quickly claimed his prize.

_**...SO WHAT DID YOU THINK? SHOULD I HAVE HAD HER MARRY ALAN AND KEPT HER AND NIGEL FRIENDS? NO? OKAY-WHO WANTS A WEDDING CHAPTER? :)**_


	30. Home is Where the Heart Is

DISCLAIMER: The characters of Nigel and Sydney do not belong to me. I found a few more little things to say before the wedding chapter, so I hope you enjoy them. Please do not copy, print or reproduce any of this story in any form without express permission of the author. Please review.

**CHAPTER THIRTY**

Sydney heard laughter as she headed down the hallway of Oxford College and smiled. She and Nigel had spent Christmas together and she had thoroughly enjoyed herself. They'd take long walks in the snow, went to the ballet and musical theatre. Spent hours snuggled in his flat drinking hot chocolate, eating popcorn and perusing the movies in his DVD collection.

Nigel seemed bent on actually courting her and Sydney was in love with the idea. Dating someone previously had seemed based solely on physical attraction and not really anything in common. She and Nigel had a lot in common and never seemed at a loss to find something to talk about. Of course, even better were the times when they didn't have to say anything at all and still could enjoy each other's company.

They had yet to consummate their relationship, not that they both didn't want to, but they had agreed to spend the time getting used to being a couple first. They were sure that there wouldn't be any issues in the bedroom.

Sydney suspected Nigel was a little gun-shy about taking that step, especially after everything he had gone through when he thought that she was marrying Alan. Sydney was determined to make it up to him, but all this was new to her as well. She was just as scared of screwing up as Nigel was.

She'd flown back home after the holidays. Neither of them really discussed the future regarding their different locals and she'd had some thinking to do and some decisions to make.

Before they sorted out their relationship, Nigel had said he would go wherever she was, be wherever she needed him to be. It was tempting, to ask him to come back to Trinity and resume their old life together as a team. Alan had wanted to change the direction of her life to suit him, and she had been so incredibly miserable and lonely after Nigel left that she was willing to let him.

The selfish part of her wanted to Nigel to move home with her, and then she wouldn't have to change anything and could keep her life exactly as she preferred it. She could go on doing what she wanted to do and be happy knowing Nigel was right there beside her.

However, after seeing Nigel with his students Sydney could not ask him to choose between her and his new career. He was simply too good an educator and it would be a detriment to their field to not allow him to continue to teach.

So she had told him she needed to head home and get caught up on a few things, and in true Nigel form, he did not question her or pressure her on when she would return. He cooked a wonderful dinner the night before she was to fly home, then cuddled with her in his bed until they both fell asleep. He accompanied her to the airport the following morning, kissed her, and told her to have a safe trip and call when she arrived.

At first she was hurt that he didn't ask to come or ask when she would be back, but then she realized he knew that she would return so he didn't have to ask. Their connection had grown stronger then ever and it gave Sydney such an incredible release to just be herself and not worry about head games or any further misunderstandings.

She called Nigel every night while she was away and told him how much she missed him and that she would come back soon. He'd tell her about his day and she would do the same. It felt wonderful to share even little things with someone and have them laugh with her or be offended on her behalf.

She had flown in early this morning, stopped at his apartment to drop off the things she brought with her, spare key he had given her, then headed to the school. Three months was a long time to be away, but it had taken her longer to get things finalized. It did, however, prove that their relationship could withstand the distance and that sealed the deal for Sydney.

She carefully opened the back door of the classroom and was surprised not to find a full class in session. There were only a few dozen students huddled in the middle of the seats towards the front

Instead of seeing a professor teaching his students, there was a large screen TV against the blackboard and the students were seated watching a movie. She spotted Nigel in the middle of his class cringing and covering his eyes.

"That's classic!" one student laughed as a zombie was shot point blank in the forehead.

"Mark Twain is a classic!" Nigel retorted, even as he laughed despite himself as the heroes blocked up a window to stem the flow of advancing zombies. "Why did I ever agree to watch this…this rubbish?"

"Because you adore us!" Mary insisted, seated on Nigel's left, laughed as she offered him some popcorn, and then almost leapt out of her seat in terror with everyone else.

"I really didn't need that much," Nigel muttered as he tried to collect the scattered pieces of popcorn that had been tossed onto him when the girl was startled.

She laughed and helped him gather the mess. "Sorry!"

"I'll take some," a young brunette, Sydney remembered her name was Judy, seated on Nigel's right side smiled shyly.

"Again, I am asking myself, why I am here," Nigel sighed.

"Because we all scored an A on our exams," reminded a lanky, pierced fellow with blue and black hair; Reed.

"I should have flunked the lot of you," Nigel grumbled good-naturedly, just as a man's arms and legs were pulled off by those trying to save him while the crowd of zombies pulled out and ate his intestines. "Oy! Oy! That's not right!"

"That was awesome!" A red-headed boy laughed.

"Quiet! We want to hear the movie!"

"Nobody can hear anything with you crunching those bloody nuts!"

"Shut it!" Nigel barked and grinned. "Let me get through this mess in peace would you?"

Several of them sniggered, but they remained quiet.

Sydney settled in one of the back seats and smiled. They were watching Shaun of the Dead. It was nice, watching Nigel with his students, seeing how they related to him, how comfortable he was with them.

The end of class bell rang and everyone but Nigel groaned.

"Thank God!" he crowed. "Free at last!" He waved his hand at them. "Now bugger off, the lot of you."

They all laughed, knowing that he was teasing and collected their books, laptops and assorted munchies as two of the tallest boys hurried over to disconnect the DVD and television.

"Awesome, movie, Prof." A tall, dark-haired boy commented, stopping by Nigel's desk. "Next week we should watch Saw…"

"Neville," Nigel cut him off. "Did you know that William Wallace was starved, stabbed, beaten and then pulled apart by horses?"

"Yeah, I saw Braveheart."

"Did you also know that the next person who coerces me into watching a grotesque horror film will suffer the same fate?"

Neville held up his hands, peaceably. "Understood," he grinned and backed away.

Sydney rose and started down the isle as most of the students wandered passed her the other way.

"Want me to bring this back to the Drama Department, Sir?" Reed asked as he rolled up the cord for the video equipment.

"That would be great. Thanks for your help."

Reed straightened and smiled. "Hey, anything for you, sir. You're a cool teacher."

"Thank you, Reed. " Nigel glanced up at the scent of a familiar perfume and spun around. "Sydney!"

She laughed as he dropped the papers he had been about to place in his briefcase and threw his arms around her. "Well, hello to you too!"

Nigel kissed her passionately, forgetting where he was until whistles and applause from his few remaining students alerted him. "Oh, God!" He flushed to his toes and hid his face in Sydney's shoulder. "Are they gone?"

Sydney laughed again and glanced at the stragglers who now seemed content to stick around. "Nope." She felt him sigh then straighten.

"What are you all looking at?" he demanded and waved at them. "Go, shoo, don't you have work to do?"

"Professor Bailey has a girlfriend!" Callum crowed.

"And she's a hottie!"

"She certainly is," Nigel agreed with his arm still around Sydney's waist. 'And if you don't wish to have your grades rescinded you'll leave…NOW!"

There was a great scramble of giggling students as they all scurried out of the classroom. When they were alone, Nigel pulled Sydney closer and just held her.

"Hello you," he murmured.

"Hello back."

"I bloody well missed you."

"Likewise."

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming in today?"

"I wanted to surprise you." She pulled back and grinned at him. "Were you surprised?"

"Obviously." Her smile was infectious. "Of course I'll have to reschedule my dates with Debbie and Sandra….OWWW!" He laughed as she pinched him. "I'm only teasing!"

"You better be or the next thing you'll be 'scheduling' is surgery to get your head removed from your ass."

"I do love it when you talk dirty."

"Idiot!"

"You're gorgeous when you're jealous, Syd." He kissed her nose. "

She laughed and released him so he could finish gathering his things. "So, I take it your kids got all A's?"

"Yes! Isn't that brilliant?" He paused. "Hang on! How do you know that?"

"I was here the day that they made the bet with you."

"Ah. I see." That day seemed a life time ago, when his whole world changed and Sydney came back to him.

"So," she smirked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Shaun of the Dead, huh?"

"They wanted something to really freak me out, I think."

"Did you tell them you already own it?"

"Absolutely not!" He grinned at her and slung satchel over his shoulder. "God knows what they would have picked if I told them I actually like zombie films."

Sydney laughed and put her arm through his free one. "Isn't that cheating?"

"Not at all. They never asked if I had seen the film, they assumed I would be horrified by it." He shrugged and pushed open the door, waiting for her to precede him. "Why ruin their fun?"

"What about the round of drinks?"

"Scheduled for Friday." He suddenly beamed at her. "Now you can come too!"

"I'd love to." She linked her arm with his again as they started down the stairs. "How about we pick up some Chinese and head home?"

Nigel's heart flip flopped at her use of the word home. He only wished she could come to think of England as her home, but he knew she loved being at Trinity. He'd wanted to ask her a hundred times when she would be returning to be with him. Picked up the phone over a dozen times to make arrangements to fly out to her; but she had asked him for some time and so he had to respect her.

"That is the best offer I've had all year," he decided. "God, I'm so glad you're here, Syd."

She could tell that he was, his whole face had lit up at seeing her. "Me too." She kissed him lightly on the lips. "I missed you too."

They took the train back to Nigel's neighborhood, stopped at a local take-away and selected several dishes then walked back to his flat.

"How was your trip?" he asked as they walked.

"It was good, I got a lot done."

"How's Karen?"

"Excited about her wedding."

"Oh that's right, it's in July isn't it?"

"Yes. Did you get your invitation?"

"I did, just this week actually."

"Are you going?"

"What a silly question, of course I am going." He paused and glanced at her sideways. "Um…I…I wasn't sure what to put for a response."

"Yes?" she suggested with a grin.

"Well, of course, but I mean…well…I mean for the…the…um…number of…" He glanced at her again, shyly. "Are…are we going? T...together, I mean?"

"Well, yeah, why wouldn't we be?"

"Well, I…I just…I wasn't sure how you felt about it." They came to his flat and he pulled out his keys. "I mean, we haven't told anyone, and there was the whole thing with your…well, with Alan and I…I didn't know if you were ready to…go public as it were."

They stepped inside and closed the door.

Sydney noticed that Nigel had put up hooks for their coats and a mat for their boots, just inside the door. "You just outed us to your whole class, Nigel."

"Not the whole class," he protested as he set his briefcase and the bag of food down and helped her off with her coat. "Just a few, and they didn't know us from…well…before."

Sydney grinned as he crouched to pull off her boots, it was the little things that set her heart to thumping, she realized. The little every day actions of Nigel that made him stand out from other men. "True," she agreed as he straightened and she set her hands on his shoulders, offering to help with his coat. "But it was a very public display."

"I was very happy to see you," he insisted as he untied his boots and pulled them off. "I couldn't help myself."

Sydney grinned and picked up the bag of food. "I know." She dropped a kiss on his head as he straightened and indicated that he proceed her. "Are you ready for us to tell the world, Nigel?"

Nigel smirked. He was ready to shout it from the rooftops, but that would certainly be inappropriate. "Well…I reckon we could tell a few…" His words drifted off as he reached the top of the landing to his living area and stared around, shocked.

His once barren walls were now filled with a collection of native cultural masks, beautifully framed artwork and other knick-knacks that he recognized from Sydney's personal home collection. He slowly took a step forward, spotted a selection of ceramic canisters to hold tea, coffee, sugar and flower on the corner of his kitchen counter, a beautiful lace table cloth covered his simple dining table and a set of silver candlesticks resided there.

Something brushed against his leg and he glanced down, startled by the creature showing him affection.

"Maftet!" he cried and picked the animal up in delight. "What…" He turned to Sydney, saw her watching him closely. "Syd…you brought your cat…you…your things…"

"It's probably presumptuous of me," she agreed quietly, trying to read his expression; was he happy or upset about the changes she made? "I thought it needed a few little things to make it more…a home."

Nigel slowly set the cat down, much to Maftet's disappointment and reached for Sydney's hands. "Sydney…" He was overwhelmed with emotion and finding it hard to talk. "What…what about Trinity? What about…All your friends are there and…"

"Not all," she denied as she put her arms around his neck and held him close. "Everyone I need is right here," she whispered, so grateful that he was happy about her decision. "You stayed with me for the first part of our relationship, Nigel. You gave up your life in London to be there for me and let me live my life as I needed to live it." She pulled back to look him in the eyes. "It's your turn now, for me to give up some things for you."

"Sydney…oh, Sydney you don't know what it means to hear you say that," He caressed her face. "But I don't want you to have to give up anything! I would never ask you to stop being who you are…"

And that was when Sydney knew she had made the right choice. "I won't, that's the best part. Nigel, I can teach or hunt relics or whatever anywhere. Here is where I want to be, with you. I want to make a home here, with you, and be happy, with you."

Mafet protested loudly at the lack of attention and Sydney glanced down at her.

"Okay, yes you too, furball." She turned her attention back to Nigel. "The fact that you didn't ask me to change, that you don't expect me to change is why I have to change, Nigel. At least make some concessions."

"Really and truly, Syd?" he asked in awe. "You'd be happy here, with just us and my…my teaching at the university? Won't you be bored?"

"You're an amazing teacher, Nigel. How could I ask you to stop?" She kissed him. "And I won't be bored." She stepped away from him to reach for her satchel and pulled out a folder. "Take a look."

Nigel, still dazed by what was happening, slipped the band off the side and opened the folder. The first thing he saw was a leaflet for FOXBAIL CONSULTING- with a picture of both he and Sydney holding one of their recovered relics.

"Specialists Seeking Historical Truth. Specializing in Cultural Seminars, Relic Authentication, Procurement and Placement of Antiquities…" Nigel stopped reading. "I…I don't understand…"

"You only have to be involved as much as you want to be, Nigel" she insisted quickly. "We can make our own hours so it won't interfere with your classes and it will give us the freedom to do the occasional hunt, if one comes along." She reached into the folder and pulled out a printed schedule. "I'm already booked for seminars through to next year and we've been placed on retainer for nine museums." She grinned and pulled the manifest that Derek had given her out of her bag. "Of course, it may take us awhile to disperse all of these, but we don't have to rush anything."

Nigel needed to sit down, everything was happening so fast he was dizzy. He half stumbled to the sofa and dropped upon it. Maftet was in his lap instantly and demanding to be rubbed. "You…we…"

He couldn't believe it. She'd given up her position at Trinity, her home and her friends to be with him? To start her own consulting business? "Syd…are…are you sure you want to do this?"

She knelt before him and took the hand that was not absently stroking Maftet. "We, Nigel. We're in this together, remember?"

"But your house…"

"Up for sale."

"Your position at Trinity…"

"Gave my notice."

"Your office…"

"I'll open one here." She smiled again. "In fact, we already have our first employee."

"What? Who?"

"Karen! She would be moving here with Aaron after the wedding so I offered her a place with us. She was ecstatic, Nigel. You should have seen…"

"Sydney!"

Sydney frowned and stopped talking.

Nigel stared at her. He had never been more in love with someone than he was at that moment. A flood of feelings threatened to overtake him. "God, Sydney." He'd never had anyone give up anything for him, certainly not so much.

"You…you don't want to do this?" she asked, suddenly uncertain. She had been sure he would be happy about the changes. She'd arranged everything on the belief that he would be overjoyed to renew their partnership.

"Not want…" he began and his voice cracked with emotion.

He swallowed several times to try and regain control. He felt like an idiot, getting so emotional, but she didn't understand. She couldn't know how often things had been taken from him, and rarely given.

The two most important gifts he had every received had been from her, once when she had hired him and gave him a chance to prove he could be more than a librarian or research assistant. The second was when her friendship. While he was happy that she also now returned his love, her true and honest friendship had been the original gift he held on to.

He didn't know how to accept such a sacrifice on her part, not for him; never for him. He cleared his throat, tried to explain. "To change your life so…so drastically, to walk away from everything you worked for…it…It's inconceivable."

"Why?" she asked, softly. "You did all of that when you came to work for me, remember?"

He had to admit, he had. "Yes, but…that was…well…" He couldn't say it was different because he'd had nothing holding him to London, nothing worth staying for. "I…Sydney I…" How did he tell her without sounding pitiful and self-indulgent?

"And you were willing to do it again, weren't you?" she pressed. " You would have given up teaching, your students and being here in England, where I can tell you love to be, just to go back with me?"

"Yes, but…Sydney…I'd do anything for you…"

"Likewise." She folded her hands around the one of his she still held. "So let me do this for you, for us. I've never been more sure of anything as I am of moving here and starting over, Nigel. I want to start over, I want us to start fresh and make a wonderful life together."

Nigel stared at her. "God, how I love you," he whispered and pulled her into his arms. "If you had told me a few years ago that you and I would be…Well here in this place, together as we are, I wouldn't have believed it." He pulled back to look in her eyes. "Now, I can't think of how it could possibly not be this way."

Sydney's lower lip trembled. "So, you're not upset that I invaded your space?"

He smiled. "How can I be, when you already own every piece of me?" He pulled her in again. "Although, I think we may need to look for bigger flat." He grinned as he caressed her back. "If for nothing else to hold all your shoes."

She laughed and squeezed him harder, then jumped back at the sharp meow that came from between them. "Opps! Sorry girl!"

Maftet offered an injured look and jumped off Nigel's lap.

"Syd," Nigel began. "I…I just don't want you to resent me if you…Well if things don't match what you've envisioned?"  
Sydney shrugged. "What if they don't? What if you decided after a few months that you can't stand living with me?"

"That…I don't think that would happen. I mean, we practically lived together the last four years we were working together…"

"It could still happen."

"Then we…we'll figure it out, work it through…"

She smiled. "Exactly." She kissed him. "We'll work through it, no matter what happens."

Nigel hugged her again. "Thank you, Sydney."

"For what?"

"For being in my life, for staying there and…" He lifted his gaze to hers. "For taking a chance."

"Likewise," she replied and kissed him again contentedly.


	31. All You Need Is Love

**DISCLAIMER:** _RH not mine. I know I promised a wedding chapter and there will be one, honestly, but apparently Sydney and Nigel have decided that they have more yet to get through before that BIG step. I do however have one question…Would you rather Nigel proposes to Sydney or the other way around? The most votes wins!_

_Also there is a deleted scene from this chapter that I am uploading under the name **WAY 31** which has an **M rating**, so be sure you're old enough to read it! I wasn't sure if it would be appropriate for the T rating that is currently on this story and I did not want to shut out any readers. That said, things do get a little steamy below so brace yourself!_

_As always…please, please review!_

**CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE**

Sydney pulled on the black silk robe she had recently purchased and headed up to the bedroom area. She smiled as she spotted Nigel in bed, propped up and reading a book, with Maftet curled up on his lap.

"Well, she's made herself at home."

Nigel grinned and set his book down to caress the black cat; who now had several streaks of silver in her to mark her nine years of age. "It's nice to have a pussy on my lap."

"Nigel!"

"What?" he asked and then realized what caused the offence. "Oh really, Sydney! You Americans can be so filthy minded! It is a perfectly acceptable term for a cat."

She grinned and walked over to the left side of the bed. "Mind if I come to bed?" They had been sharing a bed on and off before she left, but never for more than just sleeping and a bit of what Nigel would term snogging.

"Climb on in," he offered and pulled the covers back for her, just as his cell phone buzzed. He reached over, checked the display and it ignore.

"Who was that?"

"No one." He turned his phone off and set it back on his night stand, then turned and patted the bed. "Come on then. Left side all for you, I didn't even let the cat on it."

"I will, but first..." She pulled open her robe and let it slide to the floor.

Nigel's eyes immediately flew down and across the room to pinpoint a spot on the adjacent wall. "Um...Syd..."

"Look at me, Nigel."

He tried to, but turns out it was a difficult habit to break. "I...I can't."

He wanted to, God he wanted to, and especially if her being here in his room, wearing nothing but a smile meant that she intended to take the next step in their relationship. He hadn't wanted to push the matter, was enjoying just having her next to him and being allowed to cuddle and touch her.

"Nigel, you have to." Sydney wondered if all her years of displaying herself in next to nothing, and sometimes not even that, made him shy about seeing her naked. If so, they had to get past it or nothing would work. "Please?"

She was startled at how nervous she suddenly felt. She'd never been ashamed of her body, certainly wasn't shy about it either, but somehow she worried that Nigel might actually not find her attractive. She wasn't built like some of those amazons he had so often fell over himself for. What if she wasn't small enough in certain areas, or big enough in others?

Nigel had taken to staring at Maftet, who stared up at him as if to say, 'Are you stupid? Do you know what you're missing?' He took a few deep breaths and mentally slapped himself, lifted his eyes and just as quickly averted them again.

"This is insane!" he released a panicked giggle and slapped his hand to his forehead, feeling so ridiculously bashful he could hardly stand it. Atop that, he couldn't seem to erase the past censure in her gaze the few times he had been caught staring. "Sydney, I…I'm trying, honestly."

"It's okay to look at me. I give you permission."

Nigel drove his fingers into Maftet's fur. "I want to," he moaned and still could not lift his eyes. "You have no idea how much, but I… It's just…"

"Just?"

He bit his lip. Now he'd really put his foot in it. How did he explain to her that he had trained himself not to look when she was less than decent, and that breaking the habit was like trying to cut his hand off to save the arm? He'd been doing it for too many years. He shook his head, miserably. What a fool he was.

"Nigel!"

Her tone, that no nonsense, pay-attention-to-me-now pitch had his head darting up and focusing on her. For a full minute he stopped breathing and then just stared.

Sydney grew self-conscious and started to reach for her robe.

"No!" he pleaded quickly and then flushed at his eagerness. He went from one extreme to the other, now he could not take his eyes off her. "You...You're exquisite," he managed finally.

She relaxed and smiled. "Thank you," she replied and slowly crawled in next to him. "Now, you're turn."

"W...what?" he squeaked.

She pulled back his covers, displacing a disgruntled Maftet. "Now, I get to look at you."

"I…Syd, you...you've seen me in...In all manner of..."

"But I wasn't allowed to enjoy it. Now..." She pinched his bum and that got him moving out of the bed. "Strip."

"I...I can't!"

"You can!"

"Really I'm not…it's not…"

"I did."

"Yes...and...I truly, truly appreciate that. It was...an unforgettable sight and I...I'll always be grateful, but I..."

"Now, Nigel, if you want to play with your new toy, you have to play fair."

He was sure he was as red as a lobster now as he considered her words. He certainly did want to play with her, he wanted to do far more than play with her. "Um...okay, but don't…um… expect dancing or anything."

He pulled off his top and then, after a long hesitation he slipped off his pajama bottoms and stood before her in just his briefs with his arms crossed over his chest.

Sydney sighed contented as she lazily gazed over him from head to toe, then waved at his underwear. "Keep going."

"Well, really!"

"Fair is fair, Nigel."

He glared at her, then whipped off the briefs and dove beneath the sheets in two seconds flat.

Sydney roared with laughter. "I didn't get to see anything!"

"I have all the proper equipment, I assure you," he retorted. "Now, about this playing business..."

"But you didn't let me see you properly."

"Sydney! I...I just can't stand here on display and...and have you gawk at me."

"I let you gawk at me."

"Yes, yes, but you're a goddess and should be looked at…I…I mean…I didn't mean that! I mean no one has the…the right to…to stare at you…But how could they help it really…not…not…"

Sydney put her hand over his mouth and saved him from having an aneurism. "I get it, Nigel," she smiled and slid closer. "Relax." She pushed her body flush against his, heard his sharp intake of breath and felt a rush of excitement fill her. "Let's see" She slid her hands beneath the covers. "Fully equipped, huh?" She raised her eyebrows, suitably impressed. "Indeed!"

Nigel almost swallowed his tongue at her touch. "T...trained in...Multiple techniques," he managed and then gasped again when Sydney moved her hand. "Sydney, please!"

"Please what?"

He met her gaze, searching for permission and she gave it to him, readily. He caressed her cheek with a hand that was trembling with anticipation. "Are you sure?"

"No, let me think about it," she teased. "Yep, I'm sure. You sure, Nigel?"

He caught her hand and placed it against his chest. "It will be a sure thing if you keep that up," he warned and then touched his lips to hers in the sweetest of kisses.

Sydney moaned and opened her mouth to him as she used her body to push him onto his back. His tongue touched hers and she felt an explosion of tingles throughout her body.

She wanted him so badly, needed him right now, but as she attempted to take her prize, Nigel expertly deflected her attempt and released her mouth,

He cupped her face. "Not yet," he whispered.

"I want you, Nigel!" she practically growled.

"You'll have me," he smiled in wonder. "But not yet." He kissed her once, twice, three times. "Let me love you first, Sydney."

He caught her curtain of hair and pulled it back towards her neck with one hand so he could see her face, a face brimming with so much overwhelming passion that she had him close to tears; knowing her look was for him alone.

"Hurry, Nigel," she whimpered.

"We've got all night, Sydney." Using the grip on her hair he pulled her closer for another kiss. "I don't want to rush this. I've waited too long for it."

His hands cupped her face and his thumbs caressed her cheeks even as his mouth eagerly consumed hers. He mentally started reciting the English succession of Kings to calm his himself. She felt as he knew she would feel and all his dreams were coming true.

Nigel's words were like ambrosia to Sydney, and only made her want him more. She'd had sweet nothings whispered in her ear before, but they were only said in the heat of passion. Nigel's words were sincere and seemed to speak directly to her heart.

She sighed in contentment as her hands explored his body while her mouth remained fused with his. Pale white skin, milky skin, far too soft to belong to a man and yet, it felt right to belong to Nigel.

Sydney prided herself on her sexual prowess, she'd done many, many things in many, many ways, but never had she felt this intensity. This was what love was, she decided. This was what the poets and philosophers and the great lovers of history spoke of when they recited tales of their passion and their rapture. Loving Nigel opened a whole new world of sensations, sensations she never felt with any of her other lovers and suddenly, it scared her.

Releasing a small sound of distress she pulled back.

"What's wrong?" Nigel asked softly.

"I…" How could she explain that she was afraid of what was happening to her, of everything she was feeling? "It's…" Too much! It was all too much.

As was his nature, Nigel seemed to understand without the required words being spoken. He gently rolled her onto her back, rose on his elbow to peer down at her, and stroked her cheek. "I know," he admitted softly.

Sydney wanted to cry. Of course he knew, he was probably feeling the same intensity and yet he hadn't pulled away. "I'm not…" In control. She wasn't in control of what she was feeling and that scared her. She growled and fisted her hands, hitting the bed. "I can't believe this!"

Nigel reached across to uncoil her fingers. "Sydney, we don't have to do anything…"

"No!" She didn't want that spiel from him. She didn't deserve the extra leeway. She was a grown woman, fully in charge of her feelings and her libido. She shouldn't need extra assurances or platitudes. "I want to, Nigel. I do! I don't know what's wrong with me."

He caressed the area just below her neckline, as if her skin was the most fascinating thing he had ever discovered. "You're frightened," he said without malice or surprise. "I am too, Syd. It's…" He searched his mind for the proper words, the words that would console both of them. "It means something, doesn't it? I mean…really, really means something."

She nodded, amazed that he understood. That was it in a nutshell. For the first time, for both of them, the act of making love would really and truly mean something. It wasn't just attraction, or a hidden yearning to find a soul mate. It wasn't a casual affair, or something that was expected at the end of a series of dates.

"It's important," she agreed quietly and turned on her side, mimicking him and so she could caress his hip. "So important that I…I'm afraid I'll mess it up." She met his gaze and was astounded at the deep, sincere love she saw shining in his eyes. "I'm not good at relationships, Nigel."

Nigel shook his head. "Nor am I," he replied. "I've never been enough for a woman, Syd. How am I to know I'll be enough for you?"

"You will! You are! Oh, Nigel. You're more than any woman could possibly want."

"Are you willing to put that in writing?" He smirked. "I have a few dozen females, who've tossed me over, that I'd like to send it out to in lieu of a Christmas card."

Sydney smiled and some of her tension eased. He was so good at getting her to relax. "Well, if they hadn't tossed you over I wouldn't have you now."

"Good point." He kissed her nose. "So I'll include a thank you note as well."

It suddenly dawned on him that he was lying in bed with a naked woman, a naked Sydney, and the fact that they were just having a friendly, but sincere chat seemed both bizarre and yet completely normal.

He chuckled "You know, I've chatted up women to get them into bed, but not while they were already in it."

"Well, I do like to break with tradition."

"You certainly do." He tentatively slid his hand down her side, over her hip and back again, reveling in the curve of her body against his fingers, the soft sigh of contentment she released at his touch. "Syd, we really don't have to do anything tonight."

"Don't you want to make love to me?"

"I could never express how much, but I also know that it frightens you…" He paused. "Us, really. It frightens us and I think that's because it will change things."

"I don't want things to change," she admitted biting her lip. The last time their relationship _'changed',_ she'd tried to find comfort in the arms of a stranger and was willing to settle for marriage to a man she only loved as a friend. "You've been the one constant in my life, Nigel. The one person, other than my father, that I could always count on."

"Likewise, Syd."

"When you weren't there, when that…consistency changed I…I was lost." She lifted her hand to caress his face. "I couldn't handle that again, Nigel."

Hearing her say such a thing, knowing exactly how much Sydney Fox could actually handle caused an enormous burst of both pride and panic inside him. To know that he meant that much to her was awe-inspiring. It gave him the courage to be strong for her.

"I found you once, didn't I?" He captured her hand and kissed her knuckles. "When you were lost and hurt and alone? I'll always find you, Syd. No matter how lost you become, I will always be there to bring you back where you belong."

Sydney blinked furiously at the rush of tears that threatened her, because she believed him. She believed he would find her no matter where she was. "Oh, Nigel." She wound her arms him and hid her face against his neck. "I'm so stupid!"

He rolled onto his back, held her tight and caressed her hair and offered slow smooth circles across her back. "Stupid is not a word that could ever be associated with you, Sydney."

"I should have seen it," she simpered. "I knew it was you from the first day and I talked myself out of it."

Nigel blinked, confused. "Of course it was me, who else would it be?"

She released a sound that was half laugh and half sob as she pulled back to stare down at him, tears glistening on her cheeks. "No, I mean…I knew there was something about you, something real and I wanted you then. I wanted to explore it but…because of…of the disastrous affair with my last assistant I warned myself away from you."

"That's okay," he assured as he caught her tears with his fingers, kissed them away with his lips. "We weren't ready then, Syd. It wouldn't have been right. We needed to…" Again he searched his thoughts for the correct phrasing. "We needed to recognize each other first, as friends and companions." He smiled. "That's what makes this so amazing and…and frightening. We had that connection right off and rather than allow it to get muddled with our mutual attraction, we worked to strengthen in. We didn't let anything get in the way of our trust and our admiration and our…friendship for each other."

Sydney buried her face again. He was right, of course he was right. If they had jumped into an affair right away it wouldn't have lasted, because that was what she did with every other man. She let herself get carried away by desire and attraction instead of allowing them to know her, or to let herself get to know them first. Once the passion was over she found they'd have nothing to talk about, nothing in common.

With Nigel it had been the opposite. They had plenty in common first, always had something to talk about, shared joy and tragedy together. Their mutual chemistry was always pushed into the background, always reconsidered or not discussed. With Nigel, she felt a mutual respect and kinship, which developed into a strong trust and loyalty.

Falling in love was just the next step in their evolution, but because they knew each other first, truly knew each other; their strengths and weaknesses, love grew between them without their knowledge. That made it real. That made it important.

Sydney suddenly captured his mouth, her desire to show him how much he meant to her rising inside her like a phoenix from the ashes; blowing away all former trepidations and fears.

Nigel matched her enthusiasm and before they knew it they were both breathless with excitement and lack of oxygen. Together they explored and found release.

Sydney flipped her hair out of her face as she swung off him and dropped down on the bed, trying to catch her breath. "Wow!" she managed, her chest heaving, her body still vibrating with pleasure. "Holy…shit, Nigel!"

"L….Likewise," he managed, breathlessly.

How anyone could think he wasn't man enough was mind boggling. "Thank God for stupid women."

He looked sideways at her. "Huh?"

She smiled and waved dismissively. "Never mind." She sat up suddenly. "I'm hungry! We must have burned a million calories. Are you hungry?"

"I…guess…" He couldn't think straight. She'd blasted his mind into senselessness.

She stood up and almost fell over as her legs started to give out. "Woah!" That rarely happened.

Nigel reached for her as she fell back on the bed. "Easy, luv"

She smiled at him, a completely goofy smile.

"What?" he asked.

"You called me luv."

He grinned at her. "I did."

"My legs aren't working."

"My brain isn't working."

She laughed and slid down against him again. "That was fun."

"The funist."

She snuggled up against him as he pulled the covers back around him. "I'm starving."

"Mmmm…Well, as neither of us is capable of walking at the moment…" He curled one arm around her and used the other to reach for his cell phone. "What do you feel like?"

"Pizza! Loaded!

He turned the phone on and shook his head when it notified him that he had four new messages, all from the same number. "Unbelievable."

"It certainly was!"

He searched his contacts for the pizza parlor. "No, this bird from my work keeps calling me. I've told her I am not interested but she won't stop calling."

"You want me to beat her up for you?"

He smiled. "As lovely as that would be, I don't fancy another visit to jail." He put the phone to his ear and gave their order.

Maftet, sensing her persons were now finished with their aerobics jumped up on the bed and settled on Nigel's stomach so that Sydney could pet her.

Sydney scratched the cat's ears and slid her leg across Nigel's, feeling so ridiculously content she was wondering if she was actually dreaming all of this. "What a good girl, yes you are. Mama's good girl."

Nigel ended the call and dropped the phone on the bed so he could stroke the cat's fur. "She'll be spoiled between the two of us."

"She's already spoiled, trust me."

Nigel smiled at her and leaned in for a quick kiss. "I love you so much, Syd."

She beamed at him. "I love you too." She reached below and grasped him. "I especially love your equipment."

He blushed and laughed as his phone vibrated against his thigh. He glanced at the display and hit ignore. A minute later there was a new voice message.

Sydney scowled. "What is her problem?"

"I honestly have no idea. We went out two, maybe three times," he replied with a shrug. "She was nice enough but…"

"But?"

He shrugged again. "She just seemed…off somehow. A little too needy, do you know what I mean?"

She nodded. "Did you sleep with her?"

He lowered his eyes and took a sudden interest in the cat.

"Nigel." Sydney laid her hand over his. "Neither of us are puritans."

He sighed and nodded. "I know it sounds cliché, but she was all over me on the second date and…"

Sydney nodded, she knew only too well how persistent some women could be when it came to Nigel. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, Nigel. If it was mutual…"

"That's the thing," he insisted. "I wasn't overly attracted to her, but she seemed nice and…well she was obviously eager…" He shook his head. "I only did it once, she was…I don't know. It just didn't seem right, somehow."

"I get it." Sydney kissed him, lightly. "Don't worry, honeybun. I'll keep all those brazen hussies away from now on."

"Gee, thanks Sweet Cheeks!" He chuckled as she smacked him and his phone rang again with the same number. "Good grief!"

Sydney grabbed the phone, before he could, and hit receive. "Nigel can't come to the phone right now. He's having wild, passionate sex with his girlfriend. Please stop calling or said girlfriend will hunt you down and kick your ass." She disconnected the call without giving the woman a chance to respond.

Nigel laughed, even as his heart flip flopped in his chest at her use of the term girlfriend. "My hero!" he said it in jest, but realized the reality of it. She really and truly was a hero, to him and to several others.

"Aww, shucks son," she grinned and rubbed her thumb against her nose. "'T'weren't nothin'."

Nigel gently pushed Maftet off his lap. "Let me show you my gratitude," he suggested as he dove beneath the covers.

Sydney's eyes widened. "Nigel!"


	32. No Where Is Safe

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine but the remaining content is, so please do not copy/print/reproduce without my permission. There are one or two instances of offensive language. Please Review.

**CHAPTER THIRTY TWO**

"Nigel?"

Nigel glanced up from the presentation he was preparing for his next class at the pretty brunette standing in the doorway. "Nina," he acknowledged. "Did you need something?"

She moved inside and smiled. "I thought we could go for lunch," she suggested, leaning forward to offer him a good view of her cleavage beneath the tight knit, low neck sweater she wore. "We haven't seen much of each other outside of work lately."

Nigel sighed inwardly. He had two dates with the woman and then had decided that there was something not quite right about her. She was far too needy. He had tried to let her down gently, but she continued to call and leave him messages, or little love notes in his desk.

"Sorry, but I have a lunch date." He decided to avoid her outright, which was easy enough since she worked in the office and he was a professor, they hardly needed to see each other. She still didn't seem to get the message that he wasn't interested. "Why don't you ask Harry Stanton?"

She shook her head and perched on the corner of his desk, crossing one bare leg over the other and causing her mini-skirt to rise even higher. "Harry's boring." She put her hand over Nigel's on the desk. "He doesn't have the connection we do, Nigel."

"We don't have a connection, Nina," he insisted and pulled away. "You're a lovely woman, but I'm seeing someone and…"

Her expression changed immediately. "Who? That tramp that answered your phone? Are you sleeping with her?"

Nigel rose to put some distance between them. "That is none of your business, and I would appreciate it if you would stay out of my affairs."

"I'm sorry," she said, her mood instantly changing again as she moved towards him. "I'm jealous." She reached for him and Nigel found himself backed up into the blackboard. "You can hardly blame me, Nigel." She started to play with his tie, straightening it as if she was his wife and not his colleague. "I know a man like you must have urges, but you can't keep seeing these sluts when you're with me…"

Nigel was shocked and at a loss of what to do. Was she deranged? "We…I'm not with you, Nina…"

"Oh Nigel, stop teasing me. I know how you feel about me." She smiled and moved forward to kiss him.

Nigel dodged her lips and pushed her away. "Stop it!" He straightened his shirt and moved further away from her. "I'm sorry if you misunderstood my intentions, Nina, but I can assure you that we are not in a relationship."

She looked at him, puzzled and then her face slowly grew angry. "You can't do that!" she snapped, throwing her arms out and advancing on him. "You can't play with people's feelings like that, Nigel!"

Play with…She was off her nut! "I wasn't!" he assured and moved to the other side of his desk, keeping it between them. "We only had dinner…"

"You love me! I know that you do! You were so sweet to me at dinner, holding my chair, ordering the wine. You were flirting with me." In a rage she whipped her hands across his desk, scattering the papers and books. "It was obvious that you were just waiting to get me into bed!"

"I…I never…" Nigel flushed. It hadn't been like that, he was sure it hadn't.

He'd taken her out to dinner twice. On the second date he saw her home and she had been all over him. He'd had no intention of having sex with her, but she seemed insistent and he had been lonely. It hadn't been the first time a woman had come on to him, although usually it had happened in America, he was justified in accepting what she was offering.

"You think you can just use me and throw me away!" she screamed. "I have feelings! I thought you loved me, you bastard!"

Nigel could only shake his head as a few of his students headed in. "Call campus security!" he yelled at them as she picked a book off the shelf and flung it at him, missing him by inches. "Nina! Calm down. This…this isn't helping!"

"You started this, Nigel! You can't just walk away! I won't let you walk away!" She lunged at him and only Nigel's prior experience with Sydney had taught him to dodge quickly enough, and she fell to the floor instead.

She started to weep. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I thought you loved me. I thought…" She looked up at him. "Nigel, please. I can make this work, I can…" She covered her face and started sobbing.

Nigel had to ignore the fact that several students were now watching the insane scene, but he couldn't ignore a woman crying on the floor, no matter how bonkers she was. He crouched beside her. "Nina, it's okay. Really, don't cry. You…you need calm down." He helped her up and she clung to him. "It will be okay. I'm sorry you…" Got the wrong impression, lost your sanity, felt the need to channel Glen Close from Fatal Attraction? "I'm sorry."

"I'll be better," she promised as two security guards appeared in the doorway. "I'll make you love me again. You're not like the others. You love me. I know you do."

Nigel was confused and lost as to what to do for her. "You…You need to go with these gentlemen, Nina. They…they'll help you."

Her expression changed again and one arm started to slide away from him. "I can be better. I can do things your other sluts can't. I can…"

He caught her arms and pulled her away. "Stop it! Nina, please. We…we don't have a relationship. I'm sorry you misunderstood, but I don't love you."

She stared at him, her expression serene. "We will be together, Nigel."

Nigel felt a sharp pain in his side and flinched, but couldn't pull away as Nina's strength seemed to triple. She held him to her as she plunged the knife further in. "Really?" he breathed in disbelief as his legs started to crumble beneath him.

"We'll go together," she whispered as she followed him down. "Our love is forever, Nigel."

One of the students spotted the blood on Nigel's shirt as he slid to the floor and screamed.

"Forever!" Security rushed forward as Nina, half straddling Nigel lifted the knife high, intent on plunging it into his chest.

"Get away from him, you bitch!" Nigel's student Mary reached them first and literally snatched the woman away by the hair.

Nina landed hard on her side, but rebounded instantly, only to be caught and disarmed by security. She watched Mary lean protectively over Nigel and lost it. "I'll kill you!" she screamed as she strained against her captors. "I'll kill that slut of yours too! You're mine, Nigel! She can't have you, do you hear me!" They started to pull her out the door, but she managed to break free and charged forward.

"Oy!" Reed caught her and she raked her nails across his face. "Bloody cat!" He cold cocked her and she slumped motionless on the floor as the guards hustled her up and carried her off.

"Call an ambulance!" Judy cried as she dropped beside Nigel, pulled her signature scarf off her shoulders and pressed it to his wound.

Her words were muffled, as though through a tunnel and Nigel saw tears streaming down her face. He instantly felt ashamed to have made one of his kids cry. "Judy, Judy…Judy." He tried to tease as he caught one of her tears. "I've been…through worse."

She caught his hand with her own and trapped it against her cheek. "Tell me about it," she demanded. "Tell me everything, just stay awake."

Nigel wanted to tell her, but his mind was foggy with pain. He knew what had happened, but he thought perhaps shock was setting in as his body was going numb. "Blanket," he whispered. "Cold…shock…"

"Coats!" Mary cried at her classmates. "Toss me your coats!"

Immediately three or four coats and raglans thrown her way. While Judy held onto Nigel's hand and stared into his eyes, Mary adjusted the coats over him.

"Don't die, Mr. B." Mary cried.

"No," Nigel agreed, unsure if he would keep the promise. "I'll be fine."

"Professor Bailey," Reed said as he came into focus. "Help will be here soon, Sir. Stay awake, okay?"

Nigel stared at Reed's face and smirked at the nail marks and the blood bubbling to the surface. "You've got red…on you."

Reed grinned at the tag line from the movie they had all watched together and did him one better. "Well, fuck-a-doodle-doo."

"Ha!" Nigel smiled and grimaced simultaneously. "Oh…don't…don't make me…laugh."

""Does this mean we don't have class today?" Adrian asked

"Still have…homework."

There was a collective groan and Nigel grinned. Where were the paramedics? He could tell he was losing too much blood, even with Judy's scarf pressed against him. He didn't want to die on this cold floor. "Up," he managed and struggled to sit up. He wasn't going to just lie here and die.

"No!" Judy insisted. "You'll make it worse!"

"Help is coming!" Mary agreed, even as Nigel managed to sit up and gently pushed Judy away.

He looked at Reed, his best and brightest student, even if the boy had no idea of it. "Can't wait…have to move…" His vision was going dark. He had to call Sydney, had to tell her…so much more to say still. "Syd…Sydney…" His eyes shuttered closed and he would have fallen back on the floor if Reed hadn't caught him.

"Oh God!" Mary cried from behind Judy. "Is he dead?"

"Where are the bloody paramedics?"

"Screw this!" Reed decided and physically picked Nigel up off the floor. "He'll die of waiting."

* * *

Sydney dropped her bags of shopping in the trunk of her rental car and then slipped behind the wheel. So far she was having a great day. After Nigel had left for work, she rang a friend of hers and met for an early breakfast, then she headed out to shop. She didn't mean to buy as much as she did and when she saw the accumulation of bags she had by the end of it she immediately thought of Nigel's comments about needing a bigger place to accommodate her shoes; and smiled. He did know her well.

She flipped on the radio and pulled out of the parking lot of the strip mall; she had about ten minutes to get to the pub to meet Nigel for lunch. She turned up the radio as one of her favorite songs came on.

_It's amazing how you can speak right to my heart  
Without saying a word you can light up the dark  
Try as I may I could never explain  
What I hear when you don't say a thing_

She realized that the song could be talking about her and Nigel; they did seem to have a similar connection; Although, both had gotten their wires crossed the last few months, but emotions did that sometimes; clouded your thoughts.

_The smile on your face lets me know that you need me  
There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me  
The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall  
You say it best when you say nothing at all_

As she drove she envisioned all the expressions Nigel had used in the past; his smile being the most prominent; or at least the most memorable. She loved his smile and it was true that when they had been partners and working together all she had to do was look in his eyes and know that he would be there for her. She had never doubted that about him; and yet she had let her feelings about his leaving mess with that solidarity. She shook her head, never again.

_All day long I can hear people talking out loud  
But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd  
Old Mr. Webster could never define  
What's being said between your heart and mine_

_The smile on your face lets me know that you need me_  
_There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me_  
_The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall_  
_You say it best when you say nothing at all_

How many times had they understood each other without speaking, especially in perilous situations? How often had they looked at each other, placed a hand on the other's shoulder for comfort and it had been enough. No words had been needed. How often did a connection like that come along?

_The smile on your face lets me know that you need me  
There's a truth in your eyes sayin' you'll never leave me  
The touch of your hand says you'll catch me if ever I fall  
You say it best when you say nothing at all_

Sydney was still smiling as she pulled into the campus lot. She would park here and walk across to the pub.

She was surprised to see an ambulance pulled up to the main doors to the school as she stepped out of the car. A horrible feeling of dread washed over her as she hurried forward and watched someone on a stretcher being carried into the ambulance and a crowd of students and faculty milling about them.

She recognized several of Nigel's students, two girls from his classes were crying as Sydney reached them and the ambulance doors closed. "What's happened?" she demanded.

"He was stabbed!" Mary cried as Callum tried to console her. "Miss. Bertrand stabbed him!"

Sydney felt faint as she watched the ambulance peel away. "Where…where are they taking him?"

"St. Stephen's," Reed replied.

He had carried his teacher through the corridors and down the stairs, collecting a number of followers on the way of students and faculty. The ambulance had just pulled up when he pushed through the front doors and he had never been so relieved. He still had blood on him from the effort, but Professor Bailey never regained consciousness.

"Reed!" Sydney insisted, breaking into the boy's thoughts. "Where is St. Stephen's?"

"I'll show you."

"We're coming too!" Callum insisted and multiple students peeled off for their cars.

The ride to the hospital seemed to take forever and Sydney wondered if she would have made it without Reed in the passenger seat giving her directions. She'd needed to focus on his voice and the road to avoid breaking down. She couldn't lose Nigel, not now.

They arrived and were immediately told that Nigel had been taken into surgery, so all they could do was wait. Judy had ridden in the ambulance with him and they found her standing in the middle of a busy waiting room, holding her blood soaked scarf and looking utterly devastated.

Reed had filled Sydney in on what had happened on the way there, she could hear the anger and distress in the boy's voice and when she saw Judy in obvious shock, she moved to wrap her arms around her.

"Thank you," she whispered to Judy, for she had learned it was Judy that tried to stem Nigel's bleeding. "You may have saved his life."

Judy clung to Sydney as if she were her own mother. "I…I didn't know what else to do," she admitted. "I…I have first aid, I…but I couldn't think of…anything else."

"You did great," Sydney assured as more students. She kept hold of Judy as she met each of their eyes. "You all did great."

"Reed…Reed carried him out," Mary muttered, dazed. "Mr. B. was trying to get up and…and the ambulance was taking so long and then…he just…" She looked at Reed who was leaned against the wall and studying his blood soaked hands and shirt. "He carried him all the way to the ambulance outside."

Judy pulled away from Sydney and ran to Reed, throwing her arms around him. No one else knew what to say as the pair stayed locked in a sad embrace.

"Who knew that Miss. Bertrand was a nutter?" Callum commented, finally breaking the gloom.

"She was on about her and Mr. B having a relationship, or something," Adrien commented. "Were they dating?"

Sydney shook her head. It was obvious that the woman had been stalking Nigel, given the messages she had been leaving him, and Sydney wished she hadn't answered his phone the night before. That was probably what set Nina off.

"I think Miss. Bertrand needs help. Nigel didn't do anything to her, but she…she misinterpreted things."

"Is he going to be okay?" Mary asked, in a small voice.

"He's tough, he'll be fine." She smiled at all of them and prayed she was right. "Thanks to all of you for your quick thinking. He will be very proud of all of you."

She looked around at them, all looking so lost, looking to her for guidance and she didn't know what to say. She noticed the old couple with the woman coughing atrociously; another youth with blood dripping down his arm. A woman moaning from a head injury.

Suddenly she had to get away from it all, just for a moment, away from everything. She moved out into the hall, past the nurses desk and several doors, not sure where she was going, just following the florescent lines on the floor before her.

She could lose Nigel, really lose him. This wasn't on a hunt or from old enemies. This wasn't an accident in the street or being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Some woman attacked him in his classroom, in front of his students and without any kind of warning.

And where was she? Shopping. She was out shopping while he was being stabbed, came close to bleeding to death on a school room floor, because she never expected it to happen so close to home. She thought they were safe, she thought he was safe.

She turned into the washroom, where she ran for the toilet and proceeded to become violently ill.

Finally, when it was over, the incredible weight of what had happened hit her and she slid down the wall of the cubicle and cried for what seemed like hours but was really only a few minutes, because another woman entered the bathroom.

Sydney forced herself to stand, flushed the toilet and stepped out. She immediately moved to the sink and splashed water on her face. She was okay. Nigel would be okay, he had to be. There was no reason to panic.

She took a deep breath and pushed her shoulders back. She had to be brave for him and for his kids.

She returned to the waiting room just as a Doctor appeared.

"Is there a member of Mr. Bailey's family here?" he inquired.

"I'm his…" What could she say? Friend, girlfriend? They probably wouldn't let her see him. "Partner," she responded and hoped they'd misunderstand appropriately.

The doctor nodded. "He's in surgery at the moment. The knife doesn't appear to have hit any of the main organs or arteries so that is a good sign."

"Will he be okay?" Judy demanded, still clinging to Reed.

"We won't know anything until he comes out of surgery, but it looks promising." He smiled at them. "I'll let you know when he's through."

Sydney nodded and they all settled down to wait.

After several hours, many of the students wandered home, leaving only four, Reed, Judy, Mary and Callum. Sydney had been regaling them of some of her and Nigel's adventures when the doctor finally returned.

She immediately rose, along with the kids. "How is he?" she demanded.

"He's out of surgery, there were some complications, but he's a fighter and he pulled through splendidly."

The kids broke out in applause, cheered and hugged each other as Sydney smiled at them. "Can I see him?"

He nodded. "Only family for now."

The faces of the students fell in disappointment and they started to protest.

Sydney caught Judy and Reed's hands and pulled the forward, then nodded to the other two to join them.

"These are our kids," she stated, watching the doctor raise an eyebrow from the petite blonde to the darker skinned boy and the brunette of obvious Asian descent.

"All of them?" he asked.

"They're adopted."

The doctor smirked, knowing he was being had but waved them on. "Only two at a time, he's still quite heavily sedated. He's on the third floor room 304. "

The kids offered to let Sydney go in alone first and she entered Nigel's room. He was lying in a stark white hospital bed with a breathing tube in his nose and a heart monitor and IV hooked up to him. His eyes were closed so she was as quiet as she could be as she tiptoed over and peered down at him.

Almost immediately, as if sensing her, his eyes slowly flickered open. He smiled lazily. "Hello you."

"Hey," she caressed his cheek and kissed his lips. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a…thousand pound gorilla is sitting on my chest," he admitted.

"Do you remember what happened?"

"Bits." He closed his eyes for a moment then opened them again. "I'm…done with dating, Syd. You'll just have to…keep me."

She grinned. "Sounds good to me." She'd been so scared of losing him that her heart was doing flip flops in her chest as her reason tried to catch up to her fears and soothe them. "You missed our lunch date."

"Rain check." He tried to lift his hand to hers and winced. "Ow…Christ…what have they tied me to?"

Sydney caught his hand in hers and placed them across his chest, to avoid him pulling out his IV. "Just settle down, Bailey. You've been stabbed you know?"

"I…I can't believe…" He looked at her, dazed. "I never thought she'd…Really, Syd. I never meant to…"

"Ssssh, none of that matters. She was disturbed, Nigel. It happens, unfortunately."

"The kids?" he suddenly asked. "Syd, they saw…They'll think I'm a…a monster!"

"No one thinks that and your kids are fine. They held up remarkably well." She caressed his forehead. "A few of them are waiting outside to see you. Are you up for it?"

"Sure." He squeezed her hand, tiredly. "Syd?"

"Hmm?"

"I should have called in sick."

She laughed and released him only long enough to let the kids in.


	33. Acceptance

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine but the story, concept and dialogue is so please do not reproduce/print or download without my permission. Almost at the end, hope you are enjoying it.

**CHAPTER THIRTY THREE**

Nigel sat on his small sofa and watched as Sydney prepared their supper; and from the amount of banging and swearing going on, it was not going well. It was, however, immensely enjoyable watching her fuss about in his tiny kitchen.

His living room was accented with balloons, cards and flowers from the University and friends that had heard about his injury, and he was glad to be out of the hospital. Maftet was curled up on his lap, purring in her sleep.

"Can I help with anything, Syd?" he asked for the third time.

"Move and you die," she warned, and cursed when she tried to remove a lid from the pot without putting on an oven mitt. "OW! OW! Sonofa…"

"Are you sure…"

"I've got it under control!" she snapped, angry at herself for not being able to add cooking to her long list of skills.

It shouldn't be this hard to make a simple dish! She grabbed a large wooden spoon and speared the rice inside the pot, which had the consistency of oatmeal and was a strange greenish colour. It's wasn't supposed to be green!

She rushed to the recipe on the counter and realized her mistake; instead of a teaspoon of dry mustard she had put wet relish. "Shoot!"

Her attention was drawn by the waft of smoke coming out of the small oven. "No!" She ripped open the door and immediately started coughing.

She burnt her fingers a second time when she reached for the tray of blackened chicken, and snatched a towel off the counter to pull the smoldering meat out of the oven. She dumped it quickly into the sink and turned the faucet on.

Sydney honestly felt like crying. She'd wanted to prepare something special and homemade for Nigel, on his first day out of the hospital and all she had managed to do was show what a failure she was in the kitchen.

Nigel's arms wrapped around her waist from behind and set his chin on her shoulder. "It all looks fantastic."

"Liar!" Sydney had to laugh and tossing the towel on the counter, leaned back against him, carefully so she wouldn't press against his injury.

"Nonsense, we can scrape the chicken."

"The rice is green."

"And toss the rice."

"I'm sorry!" She laughed and sobbed in aggravation. "I wanted you to have a nice home coming, complete with a home cooked meal."

Nigel carefully turned her in his arms. "Syd, I don't need burnt chicken and green rice to be happy to be home." He kissed her lightly on the lips. "All I need is to have you here."

"I suck at dinner," she admitted. "I'm much better at breakfast and salads, I can do great salads."

"Excellent, I am unmatched in my preparation of KD and can manage a good steak from time to time, even mash a potato or two."

"Between us, we'll starve!"

"Nonsense. You can do the morning and I'll do the evenings."

"And when we get sick of steak, macaroni, potatoes and eggs?"

"We'll buy stock in KFC."

She wrapped her arms around him and sighed. "Maybe we should take cooking lessons again?"

"Not in this lifetime," he refused, remembering their one stint at a French cooking school. "I wasn't able to eat chicken for almost six months!"

She smiled again and kissed him, slowly, sensually; enjoying the moment of being in his arms. "Mmmm, too bad you're injured or I would suggest dinner in bed."

"I'm game if you are."

"No! What if you rip your stitches?"

"I'll die happy."

"Nigel!" She kissed his forehead tenderly and stepped back. "I'll run out and grab us some food."

He pulled her back for another kiss. "Do I get desert later?"

She grinned. "If you're very good." She hugged him carefully, delighted in the fact that she could, then turned away and grabbed her purse.

"Syd?"

She turned back.

"Be carefully, yeah?"

She nodded. "Always." She wasn't going to let anything else come between them. "I'll be back in a few!"

Nigel sighed as she left, already missing her. "Good grief!" he exclaimed aloud. "Get a hold of yourself, man! She's only running down to the corner!" He grinned at his own foolishness.

He'd always been taught to suppress his emotions, it was undignified for everyone to know what you were thinking; but he had never been very good at doing it with Sydney, not really and now, he simply didn't want to. They'd both waited too long to find happiness, so why shouldn't they be proud to show how they felt?

Sydney was much softer than he ever thought she could be. Well, perhaps soft wasn't the right word. She was still stubborn and hard as nails in some ways, but having never seen her in a romantic way; well it was really quite thrilling.

He banished the burnt chicken and rice into the compost bin and quickly did the dishes, knowing Sydney would harass him for doing anything but resting. His injury still throbbed, but the painkillers took care of most of it, as long as he didn't start doing any jumping jacks or hanging off roof tops he should be fine.

The downstairs buzzer chimed as he was drying his hands on a towel. "That was fast," he remarked and carefully descended to the front door; stairs pulled at his injury still so he had to be careful.

He threw back the lock and pulled the door open. "Did you forget your key?" he started to ask, but it wasn't Sydney on the other side. "Preston!"

__"Hello, Nigel."

Nigel stared. His brother was hardly recognizable, having grown a mustache and beard, which were kept neatly trimmed about his face. He wore colorful loose clothing. "I thought you were out of country?"

"Yes, I was." Preston admitted. "I flew in a couple of days ago." He paused and looked over Nigel. "You look good, Nigel. You look…Happy."

Nigel shrugged, he wasn't about to tell Preston the reason. "I enjoy teaching. It suits me."

"Yes…yes so it seems." Preston put his hands behind his back, touched the satchel that was slung across his shoulders, then back in front again. "May I come in?"

Nigel really didn't want to, he wasn't in the mood for his brother's pretentious ways, but manners dictated he let him in. "I suppose." He stepped aside and let Preston enter.

Preston smiled and stepped over the threshold. "Did you get my post cards?"

Nigel nodded, but didn't elaborate on where he had put them.

Preston did not immediately start up the stairs, and instead fidgeted with his satchel. He actually seemed nervous.

"Are you all right?" Nigel asked, surprised that his brother had not already gone into a long winded tale of his travels.

"Me? Oh, yes, yes. I'm fine, thank you for asking."

They stared at each other for a moment. "Well, come on then," Nigel huffed and started up the stairs.

Preston followed and as they rose to the main level he commented on the décor. "I really like what you've done with the place."

Nigel scowled; Preston had never been to his flat so he wouldn't know if anything had changed or not. "Why are you here, Preston?"

"I was in the area and thought I'd drop in and see how you were."

"Really?"

"Yes." Preston wandered, inspecting some of the items on the walls then stopping to look at Nigel's DVD collection. "You have some good movies here."

"Thanks."

Preston straightened and smiled. "So, do I get the tour?"

"This is it," Nigel replied. "Upstairs is the loo and my bedroom." He waited for Preston to make a snarky comment about the size of his accommodations and when none came he grew more perplexed. "Right. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"

Preston actually laughed. "I'm still here, Nigel."

"You don't seem to be."

"Don't I? How so?"

"You're not being an obnoxious arse."

Preston nodded, resigned.

Almera had been correct in her judgment after all and it pained him to face the truth. When he had started dating the socialite from South Africa he had been enthralled by her stories of life there; so much beauty and majesty in some areas and such ugliness and despair in others. His time in South Africa, along with Almera's honesty helped him realize how horrible he had been to what was left of his family.

"Yes, well, perhaps I've changed?"

Nigel scoffed. "I doubt it."

"Have I really been so horrible?"

Nigel was startled by the question and was unsure how to answer it. A quick retort rose to his lips, but he bit it back. He did not want to get into a discussion on Preston's past betrayal. He had been in such a good mood before and was determined not to ruin it.

Instead of answering, Nigel moved to wipe down the counter. "I have a dinner date, so of there isn't anything else…"

"Oh, anyone I know?"

"No!" Nigel flushed. "I…I mean…It's personal, Preston." He bit his lip over the fib, but no way was he about to tell Preston that Sydney was staying with him; not after the way he had behaved last time.

"I see," Preston sighed resigned and then spotted Maftet. "You got a cat!"

"No, yes…She…belongs to a friend whom I'm expecting here any moment so…"

"Well then, I'll just get to it, shall I?" Preston pulled a manila envelope out of his satchel. "These are for you."

Nigel accepted the envelope cautiously. "What is it?"

"The deed to the house and accompanying documents, which now list you as the owner."

Nigel blinked. "What house?"

"Our house, you bloody idiot!" Preston took a calming breath and tried to remember that he deserved Nigel's mistrust. He'd had several conversations with Alma on what a horrible brother he had been, and he meant to make up his past behavior. "I'm moving to South Africa, Nigel. Permanently, and so I'll giving you our house in London."

"Is this a joke?" Nigel asked as he pulled open the envelope and reviewed the papers. "I already own half the house, you self-absorbed mutton head! Why would I need your permission…?"

"Stop!" Preston stepped forward and quickly put a hand on Nigel's arm. "Before we say something we'll both regret."

Nigel scowled, shook off his brother's hand, but remained silent. He could hear Sydney's voice inside his head telling him to listen, and he tried to do just that.

"Of course you own half the house," Preston agreed tight-lipped and pressing for calm. "I never meant to insinuate otherwise. As the oldest brother the house was placed under my name…"

"A fact you quickly took advantage of!" Nigel snapped before he could help himself.

He had always resented Preston forcing his hand to move out of their childhood home, and had never gone back, with the exception of the one visit with Sydney. That had not ended well either.

"I wasn't taking advantage! I was simply honoring mother and father's wishes…"

"Oh please…"

"I had to take control of the estate, Nigel. Would you have preferred that I sold it off in pieces and pocketed the money?"

"I would have preferred that you not use it to elevate your social status!" Nigel retorted, unable to contain his bitterness any longer. "I would have preferred that you had not become a bloody dictator, lording it over me that it was your house and if I didn't live by your rules I was to leave! I would have _preferred_ that you had not changed it to suit your purposes and made it so I couldn't even come home from university without finding you with one of my college professors or one of my girlfriends, flaunting your superiority!"

Preston paled. Good God! Had he done all that? "You…you left the country…you…"

Nigel slapped the papers down on the counter. "I left because you stole the position at the museum from me and because I didn't have a place to come home to anymore, it was simply your bloody house!" He winced and put his hand to his side. Crap, the Doctors warned him about getting worked up.

Preston felt physically ill. He'd never meant to make Nigel feel unwelcome in their home, he certainly had not meant to chase him away to America. "Nigel, I…"

Nigel moved to settle carefully on the sofa. "I have to sit."

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing." He reached for the bottle of pain killers that Sydney had left on the end-table, along with a bottle of water.

"What's that for?"

"Nothing," Nigel denied and tried to get the child-proof cap off the bottle, but his hands were sweating.

Preston took the bottle from his brother, popped the cap. "One or two?"

"J…just one." Nigel really didn't want to pass out in front of Preston; he couldn't believe how quickly the pain had come on.

Preston dropped one tablet into Nigel's palm, and then peered at the prescription on the bottle. "These are strong pain killers, Nigel. What are they for?"

Nigel swallowed the pill with some water and grimaced. "I knew you'd be dropping by eventually, I wanted to be prepared."

Preston scowled. "There's no need to be rude!" He closed the bottle and set it back on the table. "If you don't want to tell me, then don't."

"I didn't plan to."

Preston glared at him, then his expression changed yet again. "I know you don't believe this, but I do worry about you."

"Why?"

"You're my brother!"

"Oh please, you've never been a brother to me, Preston?"

Preston didn't know what to say. Being faced with his little brother's resentment was almost too much to bear. Had Nigel always hated him so much? What hadn't he noticed before?

"I'm sorry, Nigel."

Nigel glanced up, suspicious. "Sorry?"

"For hurting you. For taking away your childhood home and the position you wanted. For being such a bad brother to you, I am well and truly sorry."

Nigel was speechless.

The brothers stared at each other for several minutes, unsure what to say next.

Nigel's shock finally broke and was surprised to hear himself say, "Accepted." He lowered his eyes, unable to deal with the obvious regret in Preston's gaze.

Preston smiled, relieved. "Thank you, Nigel."

Nigel shrugged, as if it was no big deal, but in reality he had been waiting all his life for Preston to apologize. Now that it had happened, he wasn't sure how to react. "Well…you haven't called me Podge once, so that…that must count for something."

Preston's smile faded. "That was a horrible name. I won't ever call you that again, I promise."

This new giving and gracious Preston was starting to bother Nigel. "All right, okay, no need to…go crazy." He scrutinized the older man. "Are you sure you weren't replaced by some body-snatching alien?"

Preston chuckled and relaxed. "I assure you, I am the real deal." He retrieved the paperwork from the counter, walked over and settled next to Nigel, offering them again to his brother. "These papers put the house in your name only, so if you want to sell it, or change it or anything, you have the freedom to do so."

Nigel was still suspicious. "The house is in my name?"

"Completely. I'm not even on the deed anymore."

The catch suddenly dawned on Nigel. "You need money," he determined. "You want me to pay you for your half of the house, don't you?" Nigel tossed the papers on the coffee table. "Well, I don't have the money to…"

"No!" Preston argued. God, why was Nigel making it so difficult? Here he was trying to do something nice for his brother and the little bugger was intent on making him into some devious shyster. "I don't want anything! Honestly!"

"But…you own half the house. You must want something…"

"No." Preston shook his head and to touch Nigel's shoulder, beyond hurt when Nigel sat back. "I've already apologized, why are you still so suspicious of my intentions?"

"Habit."

"Fine." Preston ran a hand over his face, tickled his beard thoughtfully. "You're right. I do want something from you."

"I knew it!"

Preston lowered his gaze. "I want forgiveness."

"Sorry?"

Preston moved quickly, so Nigel did not have enough time to dodge out of the way, he caught Nigel's upper arms and stared deep into his eyes. "I'm asking for your forgiveness. I'm asking…" Christ! This eating crow was truly for the birds! "I'm asking for us to be brothers again, real brothers this time."

Nigel held Preston's gaze for about thirty seconds before he brushed off the contact. It wasn't that he didn't believe his brother's sincerity, it was obvious that Preston had undergone some serious changes the past year or so, but that did not heal the knots of mistrust that came from years of being proven right about Preston's motives.

"I…I don't know, Preston," he managed. "It's a lot…I mean there's been so much…"

Preston nodded and sat back, giving Nigel his space. "I know and I'm so sorry about that."

Nigel regarded him quietly. "I…actually believe you." He shook his head, dazed. Perhaps it was the medication muddling his better sense. "I still think you should have something for the house…"

"No." Preston shook his head and then offered a self-depreciating smile. "You've paid enough, little brother. I simply want you to have it. You can live in it, sell it, beat it to the ground if it makes you feel better, but it is entirely up to you." He paused. "However, I would ask one small favor?"

"And that would be?"

"If you do decide to keep it, perhaps live in it, maybe when Almera and I come for a visit we could…stay there…with you?"

"Are you really moving to South Africa, for good?"

Preston nodded. "For good. I've found myself there, Nigel."

"I wasn't aware you were missing."

Preston laughed, his brother's wit had always been a trait he had envied. "Yes well, neither was I." He offered his hand. "We'll be getting married soon, Almera and I. I would be grateful to have you at my side, little brother."

Nigel was touched by the request and he shook Preston's hand. "Yes," he managed. "I…I can do that."

He heard the front door open and close and knew that Sydney was back. A mixture of emotions flooded him, but in the end there wasn't much he could do when Sydney appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Sydney!" Preston rose and rushed forward.

"Preston?" Sydney gaped and then smiled as she set the bag of take-away food on the counter and welcomed his embrace. "My God! How are you?"

"I didn't know you'd be here!" Preston kissed her cheek and hugged her warmly, then stepped back, capturing her hands. "Have you and Nigel made up then, or are you just visiting?"

Nigel flushed as he rose, slowly because he was still hurting. "It's not…" He began and paled. Nope, he wasn't ready to move yet. He slowly sat back down.

Sydney moved past Preston and dropped down next to Nigel. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Nigel insisted through gritted teeth.

"What did you do?" she demanded and immediately started to pull up his sweater to check his wound.

"Syd, please…I…I didn't do…" He hissed when touched his bandage.

"You've ripped your stitches!" she accused as she carefully pulled back the bloody bandage.

"I…I just did a few dishes, honestly…"

Preston moved forward. "May I?" he asked and Sydney moved over for him to inspect. "No, his stitches are okay, he just has some seepage." Preston peeled away the bandage all together. "Looks like a knife wound?"

"He was stabbed by a deranged woman," Sydney confirmed.

"Syd, please!" Nigel did not want his brother to know the sorted details. "I'm fine and what do you know about stab wounds?" he demanded of Preston.

"Almera and I help out at the local clinics from time to time." Preston stated as he moved the papers aside and sat on the coffee table facing Nigel and setting his bag on the floor. "Do you have extra bandages, a first aid kit and some ice, Sydney?"

Sydney nodded and rose.

"You're bloody not tending to me!" Nigel refused and tried to brush Preston away. "I'll wind up with gangrene!"

"Oh stop being childish!" Preston snapped as Sydney quickly returned. "I know what I'm doing." He pulled the ice out of a bowl that Sydney provided. "This will sting and be very cold," he warned as he pressed the ice cube directly to the wound.

Nigel hissed only once; he wouldn't allow himself anything else; not in front of either of them, He had some pride after all.

After a few minutes the bleeding stopped and Preston carefully wiped the area clean with a wet cloth and some rubbing alcohol wipes, then reattached a clean bandage. "There, all done." Preston wiped his hands on a towel. "Feel any better?"

Nigel nodded, grudgingly.

"Now, what's this about a deranged woman?"

Sydney glanced at Nigel, could tell he didn't want the story told but Preston deserved to hear the truth. "It was a case of stalking," she admitted ignoring Nigel's glare.

"How awful!" Preston cried. "Did you tell the police about her?"

Nigel shook his head. "I didn't realize…" He shrugged uncomfortable. "She just went off." He expected his brother to make some sort of comment about his taste in women, but instead, Preston patted his knee.

"Well, lucky you came out of it okay." He looked at Sydney. "Has she been apprehended?"

Sydney nodded. "She's in the hospital under observation."

Preston rose and picked up his satchel. "So, you two are dating then?"

Both Sydney and Nigel answered, simultaneously.

"Yes."

"No."

Sydney smirked at Nigel, understanding his concern. "We are dating, Preston." She moved back to the bag of food. "I bought Chinese, plenty for three, care to eat with us?"

Preston shook his head. "I don't want to intrude." He already knew how Nigel felt about him being there. "I was just dropping some papers off to Nigel."

"Don't be silly." Sydney pulled out the containers and set them on the counter. "I want to hear all about this lady friend of yours and your time in South Africa."

Preston looked down at Nigel who seemed to be debating the issue.

Finally Nigel waved his hand. "Don't look at me, the Queen has spoken."

Preston smiled and dropped his bag. "Well then, let's eat!"


	34. Recollection and Reevaluations

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine. Please review. Thanks.

**CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR**

Nigel paused outside the door of his parent's bedroom. He'd been surprised that Preston had not moved into the master suite of the house, and instead had been using one of the guest suites. He hadn't been inside the house in over a decade, hadn't been in his parent's room since the accident.

He took a deep breath and opened the door, afraid to see what his brother might have done to it. He was startled at the emotions it stirred in him to look at the four poster bed his mother and father had once slept it.

The room was the same, absolutely the same as the day they had left it. It was tidy and had been dusted and aired, no doubt by the weekly housekeeper Preston employed, so did not smell musty or stale, and yet it was like stepping back in time. The same photographs still lined the walls. The same covers on the bed. The same hardwood floor and antique rug.

He stepped inside and moved toward his mother's dressing table. Her hair brush, a hand mirror, some bits of costume jewelry lay there, precisely where she had left it. There were several cosmetic jars and a small make up case.

He reached for the bottle of White Shoulders perfume. Her mother had a friend that sent it to her from Canada every year. He pulled off the crystal stopper and inhaled, the familiar scent brought tears to his eyes but he forced them back. They didn't make the brand anymore, but it still made him think of her.

He put the stopper back with shaky hands and moved to his father's bureau. He felt guilty opening the drawers, expecting his father or mother to come in at any moment and demand what he was doing. He was not surprised to find the drawers empty; their grandmother had insisted that he and Preston pack up their parent's clothes a week after the funeral and give them to the needy. They had given most way, but there were a few things they had kept, and they hadn't dared to touch their mother's dressing table.

Nigel moved to the closet next and found it empty but for the hangers. He tried to stem his disappointment. Preston must have finished clearing things out. He spotted a box high on the shelf and reached up for it. It was a Harrods's hat box and when he pulled it open, he found his father's favorite fedora.

With a grin he dropped it on his head, delighted that it fit. Inside was also his great grandfather's pocket watch on a chain; the one his father always wore with his three piece suits. He flipped the top on the watch, delighted to see that it still seemed to be working, although the time was off by several hours.

There were a few other things in the box, some papers, a few cards that he and Preston had made for their parents as children and some photographs. He replaced the watch and hat and put the box back on the shelf then moved to settle in the chair at his mother's dressing table.

He stared at his reflection, but imagined hers there instead. He blinked several times, surprised that he was still so affected by their death.

Clearing his throat he pulled open the thin drawer under the middle of the desk and found his mother's white formal gloves, a few ribbons and hair bobbins, some old tubes of cream and a small oval box with his name on it.

Frowning he picked up the box. Attached to the underside of the box was a note, in his mother's handwriting.

**_'For my Darling Nigel_**

**_Our miracle and our pride._**

**_Use when the time is right._**

**_Love, Mummy.'_**

Nigel's eyes filled with tears and then he almost choked on a laugh as he saw at the bottom.

**_'P. S. Don't touch it, Preston!_**

**_Love, Dad'_**

He stared at the object in the box for a long time, unable to believe it had sat there in the table for so many years, untouched. He slowly replaced the lid and returned it to its resting place. He would use it, but not yet.

"Thanks Mum and Dad," he murmured as he carefully closed the drawer. "I hope you understand that I can't stay."

As much as Preston's offer meant to him, he found it was too hard to be in his childhood home. There were too many memories of his parents overshadowed by memories of Preston being cruel and demanding.

"I'm sure they will."

Nigel lifted his eyes to the mirror and watched Sydney's reflection walk towards him. When he had told her about the house she had been excited; and so had he. It would mean they could have a place for themselves, rent free, but the moment Nigel had stepped inside he knew he would never be able to live there. Too much had happened. Besides it would be a hell of a commute every morning back to Oxford in horrendous traffic.

He smiled and rose to face her. "This was my parent's room," he said as he gently slipped his hand in hers. "Preston kept it well, it's almost as if they're gone to a party and will be back any minute."

"Oh, Nigel."

"No no, I'm not sad, Syd. Not really." And he wasn't. He still missed his parents but the overwhelming sense of loss he used to feel had lessened over the years. "It's a relief really to be able to come in here and not be…well not feel horrible." He moved to the French doors off the bedroom. "I used to pretend this balcony was the one from Romeo and Juliet and my father would have to climb it to save my mother."

"Sounds romantic," Sydney agreed. "Are you sure you want to sell it?"

He nodded. "Yes. It needs a new family, Syd. New life." He ran his hands over the bedpost, lovingly. "They wouldn't have wanted it to sit empty."

"We could stay?"

"No. I really don't think I could. I'm okay now, but after awhile it would bring up bad memories."

She nodded in understanding and wrapped her arm around his waist so she could lay her head against his. "Whatever you want, sweetie."

He grinned and then laughed.

"What?"

"Sorry, I…I just…It's odd hearing you call me…that."

"Why? Are you saying I can't be affectionate?"

"No, not at all, it's just…" He grinned again and shrugged.

"Fine then, cabbage head," she smiled and started to pull him towards the door. "Let's go call a realtor."

"Cabbage head!" Nigel laughed again. "I much prefer Sweetie." He paused at the threshold of the room and looked back, wistfully." My mum would have loved you, Sydney. She would have loved how strong and independent you are and my father…well, he would have been beside himself when he found out what you did and would have talked you silly about historical figures."

Sydney smiled, pleased. "I wish I had known them," she admitted. "I wish you had known my mother, she was glorious." She blushed. "I suppose everyone thinks that way about their mothers."

"No, everyone doesn't." he slid an arm around her shoulders. "But isn't it grand we had two such wonderful women to raise us?"

Sydney smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "She definitely would have liked you."

"Well, if she was anything like her daughter we would have gotten along famously."

They stood there for awhile, lost in their thoughts as they considered everything that had happened to get them to this place.

"Do you regret anything, Nigel?"

"I don't know if regret is the word I would use. I might do some things differently than before if I had the chance."

"Like what?"

"Insisted on hazard pay when I signed on to work for you."

She grinned and lightly elbowed him, forgetting about his injury.

"Ow! See what I mean?" He rubbed his side. "You're a menace!"

She was immediately repentant. "Sorry, sorry! I forgot." She put her hand over his in apology. "I didn't mean it."

"Relax, Sydney. If I can't take the occasional swat or elbow from you I truly am useless."

She smiled. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's fine. I know it's your way of playing."

Her smile widened. Most men considered her too abrasive, but Nigel understood her completely. He didn't expect her to be demure and gentle. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. "Have I told you today that I love you?"

"Not once! I'm feeling horribly put out."

She laughed. "Well I love you, then."

"Likewise."

"So…" Sydney paused as she spotted a familiar looking bottle on the dresser. "What's that?" She walked over and picked up the perfume. "White Shoulders!" She pulled off the stopper and inhaled. "My mother wore this! Dad used to bring it back from wherever he was off working."

Nigel gaped at her. "That…that was my mum's favorite scent too!"

"They don't make it anymore," Sydney insisted. "It still smells wonderful, hasn't gone off or anything after all these years." She started to dab a bit on her neck, then stopped as she realized what she was doing. "Oh, God, Nigel. I'm so sorry."

"No, it…" The sight of watching Sydney apply his mother's perfume stirred something primal inside him. "It's fine, Syd. Wear it if you like." He walked over and inhaled, then put the stopper back in the bottle and wrapped her hand around it. "It's yours."

"Nigel, are you sure? I mean I don't want to bring up bad memories and it was your mothers…"

"No, it's fine. Really." He smiled. "It would be nice for you to have something of hers and…and it will be a memory of your mum as well."

Sydney realized that the scent truly did make her feel as if her mother was standing in the room with them; it brought her close to tears. She leaned forward and kissed him. "Thank you." She caressed the antique glass lovingly. "I'll only put it on for very, very special occasions."

"Every day I spend with you is special, Sydney."

"Awwwww." Sydney's heart melted and she rubbed against him. "Would you like me to make it really special?" She ran her free hand down his chest. "Want to show me your bedroom, Nigel?"

"What for?"

"To have a little romp between the sheets of course."

"God no!" He stepped away from her suddenly, startling her. "I can't have sex with you! You smell like my mother!"

"Nigel!"

He laughed and ran out of the room with Sydney chasing after him.

* * *

Nigel entered the pub and tried to put himself in a better mood. He'd been off for about a week with his injury, and had been concerned about returning to school. Several students had witnessed the incident and so there were a lot of stories going around about what really happened.

His first class seemed happy to have him there and spent the first part of the hour asking him how he was and what had happened. Once that was over with, they had been willing to work and seemed to hold no reservations from the recent gossip.

Just before the end of class, the Dean of the university appeared at his door. Nigel finished off the lesson, reminded the students about reports due next week, and then turned to Dean Linstrom.

"How are you feeling, Professor Bailey?"

"Much better, thank you, Sir."

"Glad to hear it." The older, slightly chubby man replied. "Do you have another class now?"

"Not until eleven."

"Good, good." The Dean closed the classroom door discretely. "We need to talk about what happened."

"Sir, I assure you, I never…"

The Dean held up his hands. "No one is suggesting anything untoward, Ms. Bertrand had some issues at her last position and unfortunately that information slipped under the university's pre-check."

Nigel nodded, but couldn't get rid of the knot in his stomach as his employer continued to speak.

"There is, however, the policy regarding fraternization. You did date, Ms. Bertrand, did you not?"

"I…we went to dinner, twice, but…Sir, my understanding was that the policy was in place against faculty and students."

"It is, however there is a…shall we say…unspoken agreement among the staff that there is to be no romantic liaisons within the staff departments as well."

"Dean Linstrom, that was never privy to that information and even so, I saw Ms. Bertrand only twice for dinner and that was all."

"Was it, Professor Bailey? Ms. Bertrand has been telling her co-workers for weeks that you and she were having an affair."

"That's ridiculous!" Nigel snapped and then tried to reign in his composure. "Dean Linstrom, you've said yourself the woman is unstable. Nothing happened between the two of us that could justify…"

"You are denying that you slept with her, then?"

Nigel flushed and felt the knot in his stomach grow to the size of a basketball. "I…" What could he say? That he had taken her to dinner and she seduced him when he took her home? "It wasn't like that."

"I see." The Dean folded his hands in front of him. "Well, regardless of how it was _'like'_ the fact of the matter is that you have broken our rules."

"A rule I wasn't aware of!"

"Look, Nigel," The Dean put a hand on Nigel's shoulder. "I don't want to lose you; you're an absolutely brilliant teacher, but the students have blown this incident out of proportion and it has gotten back to many of the parents. They are demanding action and I have to be the one to give it."

Nigel lowered his head and bit his lip. "So…I'm to be sacked then?"

"No, I refused to fire you. That would go on your permanent record."

Nigel lifted his eyes to the older man's and realization dawned. "You want my resignation."

"Let's call it a prolonged leave of absence, shall we?" the Dean suggested. "You will receive a year's severance and full benefits for the next two years, due to your injury."

Nigel looked over his classroom and was filled with regret. He supposed that was very generous of the university, considering the situation. His eyes fell upon the seats. Suddenly, the idea that he would no longer be able to teach anyone caused a waterfall of despair and depression. He'd worked so hard to get here and in an instant, everything was lost.

He nodded, slowly. "M…may I make the announcement to my…" His kids, he'd been about to say, but they wouldn't be his anymore. He cleared his throat. "To the students, Sir?"

The Dean nodded solemnly. "I thought you might like to do that, Nigel. Feel free to finish out the term…"

"No. No, I…I think it would be easier to leave at the end of the week, Sir."

The Dean lowered his head. "I really hate doing this, Nigel." He extended his hand. "It has been a pleasure having you here. I would be happy to put in a good word for you at any other university."

Nigel regarded him quietly for a long moment, and saw the regret in the older man's eyes. "Thank you, Sir." He took the older man's hand and shook it, firmly.

Nigel pulled himself back to the present and moved towards the rear of the pub, towards their usual booth. He saw Sydney waiting for him, along with Karen and a man he assumed was her fiancé. They had called the night before to say they would be in town.

Nigel couldn't face them yet, he was still upset over the Dean's decision. Instead he turned around and stepped back outside. How was he going to tell Sydney he'd been sacked? Perhaps not officially, but unemployed was unemployed. He felt like a failure all because he let himself be led down the path by a woman again.

He walked over to a bench under a lamp post and dropped down upon it. If he didn't go in she would worry, if he did go in he'd be less than acceptable company. He didn't know what to do.

When he had made the announcement to his class they had all looked at him betrayed and shell shocked. He wanted to tell them the real reason, but he couldn't. He was too ashamed.

Mary and Judy cried openly and begged him not to leave, but the decision was out of his hands. Reed had thrown his books down and stormed from the class room. He had tried to comfort them, but what could he do? They wanted him to stay and he felt vindicated over their faith in him, but he couldn't do as they asked.

Finally, he couldn't take their turmoil any longer and they were not getting any work done. He dismissed them and cancelled his afternoon classes as well, unwilling to go through the upset with more kids. At least, not today.

He was hurting too and had walked for hours in the cold, avoiding the pubs and bars because he didn't want to be liquored up when he met up with Sydney and Karen. All the walking had only depressed him more.

Finally, he pulled out his phone and sent a text to Sydney. _Am os. Bad day._ He paused wondering what else he could say. Finally he typed. _Going home. 4give?_

He sighed heavily and rose, but only got a couple of feet before his phone signaled a received message. He looked at the screen and almost wept at Sydney's message.

_Will ditch. B thr soon w/fudge ripple_. LYL

He smiled for the first time all day and texted. _TY & LW._ He slid his phone back in his pocket and hailed a cab.

Once he was home he changed into a pair of loose pants and a T-shirt, popped in a movie and curled up on the sofa with Maftet. He decided on a comedy, hoping it would pull him out of his depression, but he had only been watching it for about forty-five minutes or so when he heard his door open.

He set the cat aside, ignoring her protesting meow, and rose as Sydney ascended the stairs, a paper grocery bag in her hand. She set it on the counter as he walked towards her and opened her arms. At first they said nothing, just hugged.

"What happened?" she finally asked.

"I've been sacked."

"What!"

Nigel sighed and revealed the details.

"They can't do that! We'll go to the school board, the…"

Nigel shook his head and caught her waving hands. "No we can't. It works differently here. Once the decision is made it's done."

"But…that isn't fair!" Furious, she pulled away. Needing something to do, she reached into the bag and retrieved a bottle of wine, a tub of ice cream, a small bag of chopped walnuts and a bottle of syrup "They be a fool to let you go, Nigel! They'll never find someone else who understands history the way you do."

"I'm sure they…"

She pulled down two bowls and slapped two scoops of ice cream each inside them. "Don't they understand that woman was nuts? You almost died and this is how they repay you, but firing you?"

"Sydney, you…"

She dropped two more scoops in the bowl, then ripped open the bag of nuts, scattering several of them across the counter as she dumped them over the ice cream. "Of all the ungrateful, unreasonable, arrogant…"

"Syd…" Nigel tried to catch hold of the bag she was swinging around in her rant and noticed Maftet pouncing on the pieces that landed on the floor.

Sydney turned away and snatched two wine glasses from the cupboard, slapping them on the counter so hard Nigel physically winced. "Well, you better believe we're not doing any business with them from now on," she growled as she ripped the top off the wine bottle and sloshed it over the ice cream. "They need something authenticated? Researched? Found? Screw 'em! Foxbail Consulting will _not_ be doing squat for them!"

Maftet hopped up on the counter as Sydney grabbed the chocolate syrup and proceeded to fill the wine glasses with it. "They were lucky to even have you! Don't they know you can speak a dozen languages and are unequaled in historical statistics? Don't they know where you've been and what you've done?"

"It was more who I've done that was the issue…" Nigel began, trying to inject some wit to calm her down.

"You've been in the company of Kings and Queens!" she insisted, causing Maftet to hiss in offense and narrowly miss being nailed with the bottle of syrup. "And they think they can just fire you? No one is allowed to fire you but me, damn it!"

Nigel couldn't help it, he started to laugh and once he did he quickly found he couldn't stop. The absolute absurdity of the situation suddenly hit him as hysterically funny; even without Sydney's side show.

Sydney gaped at him. "Why are you laughing?" She scowled. "Nigel? I thought you were upset?"

He dropped to his knees, weak from mirth, and reached up to pulled her down to the floor with him. He was holding his side because it was hurting from the laughter, but unable to stop laughing. "I…you…We…" He shook his head and gasped for breath. "Ow…ow…oh…it hurts..." And he started laughing again.

Sydney's lips twitched, it was hard not to when Nigel was so jovial. "Well…I'm glad you're in a better mood!"

Finally, he slowed and gasped in much needed oxygen. He lay back on the floor, totally uninhibited and massaged his side as Sydney knelt beside him, perplexed.

"I…I'm sorry." He wheezed. "I…It's all just so…" He shook his head and took deep breaths as he stared up at the ceiling. Maftet, wondering why her humans were laying on the floor, walked over and promptly started rubbing against Sydney.

"It's just so what?"

He shook his head and rose up to her level. "When I left the university today I felt like my whole world was toppling," he admitted quietly. "I couldn't even face dinner with you and Karen, although I really wanted to see her."

"She understands. I told them to come here for dinner tomorrow."

Nigel smirked. "I hope we're ordering out." He sighed and winced at the same time because his side was still aching from the laughter. "Anyway, I wasn't in very good spirits. I thought my career was over."

"Oh, Nigel." Sydney touched his cheek.

"No, it's okay." He caught her hand in his and stared at their fingers intertwined. "I don't feel that way anymore."

She tilted her head. "You don't?"

"No." He sighed again, contented. "And you're the reason."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. You were so…indignant on my behalf, so furious for something that hadn't even happened to you that…well…I just couldn't imagine feeling bad about anything with you here, Syd."

"Thank you, Nigel." She beamed at him. "That means a lot."

They stared at each other for a long time, then they moved simultaneously towards a kiss. Nigel closed his eyes and slid his hand into Sydney's hair. Sydney's arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him closer; opening her mouth to grant him full access.

"Sydney," he whispered, kissing her and then pulling back and clearing his throat. It wouldn't do for them to be rolling around on the floor. "What _am_ I going to do?"

"Come to work with me."

"Yes, I…I suppose, but what will we do for money if neither of us have an income?"

"I have a good bit of savings, we can use some of what you sell the house for if you want, and once we're up and running we can bill whatever we want to clients."

"Yes, yes, that all sounds reasonable, only…It's frightening to not have a job,Sydney."

"You could apply another university."

"I could, but…" He rose and pulled her with him. "I don't know that I have the heart to now. I mean, I'd have to explain why I left this position."

"Just tell them you were attacked and you found it difficult to return."

"No." He shrugged and moved away from her, pushing his hands into his pockets. "I don't know what to do."

"Well, take some time and think about it." She slid her arms around him from behind and rested her chin on his shoulder. "You probably should to fully recover from your injury anyway and it might give you some clarity."

"I suppose." Nigel suddenly had an epiphany. "Syd, were you wanting to…to go on any hunts again? Once we're set up I mean?"

"If any interesting ones come along, we could, why?"

Nigel liked that she automatically included him in the choice. "Well…I may have a lead on one, or it could just be a myth of course." He turned around and looked her in the eye. "It might be interesting to see, do you think?"

"Absolutely." She nodded. "Who told you about it?"

"Oh, it was a story I heard a long time ago, it may come to nothing really."

"Like Sir Gabriel's sword?" She smiled at him. "Every legend starts with a story. If it's something you're interested in, we should go for it."

He smiled. "Yes. Good. I think that will take my mind off this nasty sacking business and it would be good to be in the field again."

"We do make a great team."

He nodded. "We…we should probably eat our wine covered ice cream and drink our chocolate sauce, don't you think?"

"Huh?"Sydneybolted up and stared at the mess she made. "Screw it!" she decided and grabbed the bowls, handing him one, along with a spoon. "Maybe we've discovered a new taste?"

They took a spoon full each, stared at each other and then spat it out.

"Yuck!"

"Horrendous!"

They laughed and scrapped the ice cream into the the two glasses of chocolate syrup and grinned.

"Now, this I can find a use for."

Nigel's eyes widened


	35. Truth and Fairytales

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine. I have re-written this about five times, so I hope the end result is worth it. It's a little long winded, sorry about that. Please enjoy and review.

**CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE**

The following evening Karen and her fiancé arrived at Nigel's flat.

"Karen!" Nigel greeted as he threw open the door and she flew into his arms, giggling. He kissed her cheek and then pulled back to look at her, still holding her hands. "You're as radiant as an angel, how lovely!"

Karen blushed and laughed. She had worried that he might still be upset at her from the months previous when Sydney had been hurt, especially when he hadn't shown for dinner yesterday, but he seemed genuinely happy to see her. "I missed you!" she hugged him again and then indicated the young man standing next to her. "Nigel, I'd like you to meet my fiancé, Aaron."

"Fantastic to meet you." Nigel shook the other Englishman's hand. "I'd tell you to make our girl happy, but it seems you already have."

Aaron nodded. "Karen's told me all about you. The pleasure is entirely mine, I assure you."

"Come in, come in!" Nigel stepped aside for them to enter then closed the door. He took their coats and hung them on the hooks as they removed their outside boots. "I'm sorry about yesterday," he said as he led them upstairs. "I'd had a horrible day and wasn't very good company, I'm afraid."

"Sorry to hear it," Aaron offered kindly. "Hope it wasn't anything too serious?"

"It's not important anymore, no." They reached the top and Sydney fairly flew at Karen.

"You're here! You're here! Saints be praised!"

Karen giggled and followed Sydney in her little dancing hug. "You saw me yesterday!"

"I know, but I'm still excited!" She smiled at Aaron. "Good to see you again, Aaron."

"Sydney," Aaron nodded in greeting. "Thank you for inviting us to your home."

"Have a seat," Nigel indicated the living area. "What can I get you to drink?"

"Whatever you have is fine." Karen assured as she settled next to Aaron on the sofa.

"How do you feel about wine flavored ice cream?"

"What?"

Sydney elbowed Nigel. "Never mind," she grinned sheepishly. "Just pour the wine smart arse."

"Better than being a dumb arse." Nigel pursed his lips brazenly. "And I'm your partner, not your lackey, so ask nicely or there'll be no dessert for you, Ms. Fox."

Sydney grabbed his face and planted a soul shattering kiss on him. "How's that for nice?"

He flushed and grinned. "That'll do," he agreed and moved into the kitchen area.

Sydney smiled as Karen gaped at them "What?"

"Sorry I…It's gonna take some getting used to," Karen admitted. "Seeing you guys…kiss."

"Really?" Nigel asked as he poured four glasses of wine. He picked up two and walked up to Sydney to hand her one. "Here, I'll do it again." He leaned in and kissed her, gave her a heart stopping smile, and then walked over and handed Karen her wine. "Are you used to it yet, because we can keep going until you are?"

"I have no problem with that," Sydney assured as she settled in the matching arm chair.

Karen laughed and playfully slapped at him. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Who wouldn't?" he smiled as he returned to the kitchen for the other two glasses. He gave one to Aaron and then perched on the arm of Sydney's chair. "We're expecting one other guest, and then we can eat."

"Oh, who else is coming?"

"My brother, Preston."

"Really?" Karen asked. "I don't know if I ever had the chance to meet him."

"Lucky girl…Oomph!" Nigel glared at Sydney for elbowing him. "Would you keep that bloody thing in check, please?"

She smiled and batted her eyelashes at him.

"Syd, would you show me the powder room please?" Karen asked, setting her wine down.

"Why is it that women are incapable of going to the loo alone?" Aaron asked.

"They go in there to talk about us," Nigel replied. "And plot to buy more shoes."

"You think you're so smart." Sydney rose and ruffled Nigel's hair. "Try to behave while I'm gone."

"I'm always behaved!"

The two women climbed the stairs to Nigel's bedroom and Sydney showed Karen the washroom.

Karen left the door open, as she only wanted to wash her hands and touch up her make up. "You seem happy, Syd."

Sydney leaned against the door frame. "I am, Karen. For the very first time in my life I truly am." She smiled. "Are you excited about your wedding?"

"Beyond that, but I've got everything under control." Karen pulled out her lip gloss. "Since it's just me and my brother I don't have anyone pressuring me to do anything except what _I_ want to do, so I already have everything organized."

Sydney nodded. "I bet." She moved in and checked her hair in the mirror. "You always were good at that part. Is your brother giving you away?"

"Yes." Karen turned to her. "What about you, Syd? Are you and Nigel going to take the leap?"

"I…I don't know, Karen. I hurt Nigel pretty badly when I ran off to marry Alan."

"He's obviously forgiven you."

"Sure, but I don't want to bring up the marriage card, not yet. "Maybe not ever after her last fiasco. "We're still getting used to being together." She hated to admit it, but she didn't honestly know if Nigel wanted to marry her. He never indicated the desire.

"Do you want him to ask you?"

More than anything, but Sydney replied. "We're fine the way we are."

"I think you guys were meant to be together," Karen admitted as they left the washroom. She suddenly turned to face, Sydney. "I know I'm about to be a married woman, but it's killing me not to ask, so I will."

Sydney knew exactly what the blond was after; Karen had a major crush on Nigel for years. "I'm not a kiss and tell sort of girl," she teased. "But if I had to rate on a scale of 1-10…"

"Yes?" Karen asked, eagerly.

"You slut!" Sydney shook her head and laughed. "You have your own!"

Karen grinned. "Oh come on!"

"Let's just say that when it's with the person you truly belong with it's…indescribable."

"I knew it!" Karen sighed. "He never looked at me the way he looked at you." She smiled. "But Aaron does and I can't begin to tell you how special he makes me feel, Sydney."

"Special is great, but do you love him, Karen?"

"More than anything."

"Good." Sydney hugged her. "I'm so happy for you."

Karen's eyes misted over. "We've both found the man of our dreams, Sydney. I can hardly believe it."

"And we're starting a new chapter of our lives, together with Foxbail Consulting."

"Yes! Thanks for that. It was overwhelming; the idea of moving here, but having a job all lined up with my two favorite people took so much of the pressure off."

"We couldn't do it without you, Karen," Sydney said as they headed downstairs. "In fact, Nigel says he may already have a lead on our first official relic hunt for the company."

"Really! That's fantastic!"

"What's fantastic?" Nigel asked rising as they reached the second level of the living area.

"Sydney said you have a lead on a relic for Foxbail Consulting?"

"Oh, that." Nigel shoved his hands in his pockets. "Yes, I do, actually, but you have so much going on with your wedding we didn't want to bother you with it."

"Are you kidding? I'm part of this too, you have to include me!"

Nigel shook his head. "It's nothing really. It may not even be worth our efforts…"

Sydney settled back in the chair. "Well, shouldn't we judge that for ourselves?" she asked. "Come on, I've been waiting for you to tell me about it; now would be a good time."

Karen sat beside Aaron, picked up her wine and nodded, eagerly. "Absolutely."

"Well, it's more a story that I've heard then a hard fact, and there is no guarantee there is any truth to it."

"Stop stalling and tell it!" Sydney ordered as she caught Nigel by the arm and pulled him back to settle on the edge of her chair. "Before my curiosity kills my cat."

Maftet, who had been inspecting Aaron's feet meowed in reproach and darted off upstairs.

"Okay, okay." Nigel took a sip of his wine. "Well, um…as you know, Syd, the tale of Sir Gabriel came to me through the stories my father told me."

"I remember you told me about that one," Karen agreed and explained to Aaron. "Nigel researched the legend of Sir Gabriel, a Templar Knight. He got in contact with some monks who also were aware of the legend, though they tried to deny it, and then ended up finding the actual sword and gauntlet of Sir Gabriel!"

"It was nothing," Nigel assured, modestly. "Sydney actually did more than I." He didn't want to elaborate that she had probably saved the world by using the weapons of Sir. Gabriel to vanquish a demon.

Aaron smiled at Sydney. "That's fantastic, an actual Templar Knight?"

"It was Nigel's discovery," Sydney insisted and caressed Nigel's knee. "It meant a great deal to him, because it proved his father's stories were true."

Nigel's heart turned over in his chest at that dazzling smile of hers, still so amazed that she was his, in every way that mattered. He wondered if she realized how heavenly her smile, her touch, especially her praise made him feel. For a moment he forgot about their guests and there was just the two of them.

"Hello? Earth to Nigel?"

"Hmmm?" He pulled his gaze away from the most beautiful woman in the world to look at Karen. "Sorry, what did you say?"

Karen grinned at Sydney whose lips formed a small, secret smile at Nigel's devotion. "Are you going to tell us the story?"

"Oh…Yes, well, this one is a story that my mother told me, and it's been playing around in my head for years, but I never thought to consider searching for any truth in it."

"Why not?" Sydney asked.

Nigel shrugged as he absently folded his fingers around the hand that still lay on his knee. "We always had plenty of things to look for, Syd. I guess everything else seemed more important at the time."

She nodded in understanding and squeezed his fingers, sensing his visit to his parent's house may have stirred up the memory.

"So...what's the story?" Karen encouraged.

"Well, there is a legend of what is called the Jewel of Queens," he began.

"The Jewel of Queens," Aaron repeated. "Seems I remember hearing something about that."

"The legend is fairly well known in England," Nigel nodded. "Although no one ever confirmed what the Jewel actually was."

"Just so," Aaron agreed. "I remember when we were lads there was always a sort of comment going about in relation to it. Things like, that is as beautiful as the Jewel of Queens, or as large or as shiny."

Sydney was impressed. The Jewel of Queens was a priceless artifact, one many treasure hunters and scholars had been searching years for. Proof of its existence and what it actually was would knock the historical community on its ear and would offer unimaginable wealth and fame to the person who discovered it.

"There have been endless rumors about it over the years," Sydney said. "It could be anything from a scepter to crown, or an enormous diamond or gemstone. The Royal family has never had any comment about it."

"Makes it harder to find when you don't know what you're looking for," Karen reasoned.

Nigel smirked. "It wouldn't be the first time we were in the dark until the reveal."

"True enough." Sydney grinned. "The Jewel of Queens, whatever it was, was rumored to belong to Anne Boleyn. It was said to have passed to her daughter Elizabeth I when she became Queen. Elizabeth, having born no children, decreed that it could only go to the next daughter of an English King who became Queen. Thus it passed to our current and reigning Queen Elizabeth II when she inherited the throne."

"Well, that's that then," Aaron sighed. "No doubt it's with the rest of the crown jewels locked up in the tower of London."

"Not necessarily," Nigel denied. "Because, also, according to the legend Queen Elizabeth did not keep the Jewel of Queens."

"Really?" Karen said, surprised. "How does anyone know that?"

"The existence of the artifact was documented when Anne Bolin died, but the description of it was left out. It was only ever referred to as the Jewel of Queens," Nigel said. "This was thought to be a specific request from Anne, calling it by name with no description, so her husband would never know what the Jewel was, and thus could never take from his daughter Elizabeth, her mother's last gift."

"It's sad when a mother has to go to such lengths for her child," Karen sighed.

"Yes, and the next time that the Jewel of Queens was mentioned was when Elizabeth II was crowned Queen."

"Did it say that she gave it away?"

Nigel smiled. "Ah, that's where the lines blur between fact and fiction." He rose to retrieve the bottle of wine and refilled their glasses, before settling next to Karen on the sofa. "There was a girl named Charlotte Grayson, whom Elizabeth met in October, 1940, while accompanying her father, then King George, during a royal visit to a London hospital. Charlotte Grayson was about the same age as the Princess Elizabeth and was being treated for an injury from the recent German bombings. The story goes that the Queen bestowed a priceless gift upon Charlotte, though no one could ever say what that gift was."

"And you think it was the Jewel of Queens?" Aaron asked.

Sydney shook her head. "I doubt Elizabeth would have give away such a secret family heirloom to a girl she had only just met."

"I agree," Karen said. "I don't think Elizabeth would have given a stranger something that belonged to the Royal Family for generations. As we don't know what the Jewel of Queens really is, how would we even know she would even have it on her person at the time?"

"Well, this is where the story part comes in," Nigel stated. "Our mother told us a tale that was passed down from her mother, who had lived during the war with Germany; a story called the Queen and the Commoner."

"Go on," Sydney encouraged.

"According to the story, against all odds Charlotte Grayson and Princess Elizabeth became friends. After her father died and Elizabeth inherited the throne, she and Charlotte remained in touch through letters. It was rumored that the Queen and gave Charlotte a great gift."

They all waited for a few seconds, but Nigel didn't continue; instead he glanced at his watch.

"Is that it? That isn't much of a story," Aaron scoffed. "And what does it have to do with the Jewel of Queens being left to this Charlotte woman?"

"It's a story not a thesis paper." Nigel shrugged. "It could be nothing more than a tall tale, after all."

"Don't give us that!" Sydney grinned. "There's more to it, now spill."

Nigel continued. "Charlotte married a banker and had a set of twins, Edward and Eloise. Queen Elizabeth had also just had a child, a son named Edward and the two boys, oddly enough, shared a birthday."

"That's totally cool," Karen decided and nudged Aaron playfully. "And I don't care if it is fact or fiction."

Aaron smirked at her.

"According to the story, every year, the Queen invited Charlotte's family to Balmoral Castle for their son's birthdays, where the children could play and the two women could catch up face to face."

"Imagine," Karen sighed. "Having dinner with the Queen of England."

"Imagine all the poor people who have prepare and serve that dinner?" Aaron tossed and Karen swatted him.

"When he was only sixteen," Nigel continued. "Charlotte's Edward contracted leukemia, and died shortly after. The Queen paid a visit to the grieving family and, as a token of friendship, she bestowed upon Charlotte a treasure of unspeakable worth, something that had been in her family for generations."

"The Jewel of Queens," Sydney decided.

"Hang on, I do remember hearing something this," Aaron interrupted. "There was something in the media a few years back, a statement or comment from Prince Edward himself, actually. At one of his birthday dinners he made a birthday toast to fellow named Eddie, and when asked about it, he said it was a childhood friend who had passed years ago."

"So there is truth to parts of the story then," Karen agreed, excited.

"That doesn't prove that Elizabeth gave this woman the Jewel of Queens! It could have been a diamond tiara."

"Go on, Nigel," Sydney requested.

"Charlotte never confirmed what was given to her, stating that to name it would reveal too much."

Sydney finished off her wine, sat forward and set it on the coffee table. "It's a good story, but I agree with Aaron. It doesn't confirm what was given to Charlotte or that, if she still has whatever the Queen allegedly gave her, she would be willing to let anyone else get a look at it."

"Exactly," Aaron agreed. "Not only that, but if some woman had the Queen of Jewels in their family we would have heard about it by now, beyond a story that it had been given to her. She would have had it appraised or insured or something, told someone about it and it would have been in the papers at least."

"Not everyone is willing to sacrifice a friendship for wealth and fame!" Nigel snapped and flushed when everyone cast him a startled look. "Sorry. Sorry. I…I only meant that if Charlotte was as close to the Queen as the story entails, she wouldn't have thought to discuss it outside of her own family. She would have honored the Queen's need for privacy."

Karen put her hand over Nigel's. "He didn't mean anything bad," she assured glaring at Aaron. "_Did_ you?"

"No, not at all. I only meant that…well even if Charlotte herself didn't say anything, someone would have seen something? A neighbor, a servant of the Queen, something would have come out by now."

"Why?" Nigel demanded. "Because everyone wants their fifteen minutes of fame? That's a very cynical view of people."

"Either way." Sydney stepped in to avoid the argument going any further. "If the Jewel of Queens exists and if Charlotte Grayson has had it all this time, without telling anyone, I sincerely doubt she'd welcome our interference or that she would tell us anything."

"Maybe not," Karen argued. "If we told her that we just wanted to prove the story Nigel's mother told him and promised that we wouldn't tell anyone else she might be game."

"Charlotte Grayson died in 1984," Nigel commented.

"How do you know that?"

"I…found out awhile ago."

"Well," Karen continued. "You said she had a daughter named Eloise?"

Nigel nodded.

"So we check the birth records for someone named Eloise Grayson and go from there."

"Many of the city records were destroyed in the bombings," Nigel protested. "I don't know that you'd be able to find anything on her."

"Can't hurt to try." Sydney replied. Did he want to learn the truth or not? "Any idea if she married?"

Nigel shrugged. "I couldn't say. I never looked at it as anything beyond a childhood story."

"But you just said you confirmed Charlotte Grayson existed and died?"

"Well…yes, but I…I learned that years ago. I mean I never went any further with it…beyond her, I mean."

"It can't be that hard to find out," Sydney decided as the front door chimed and Nigel rose to answer it. "Karen can you work your magic from there and track down the addresses of any next of kin we can find? Maybe check St. Anne's, see if there are any records that might give us an address or something to go on. "

"Of course!" Karen nodded, excited. "It will be just like old times."

"I say, this is quite intriguing," Aaron admitted. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Check out any birth records for girls named Eloise that weren't destroyed during the war, we have to have a starting point."

Nigel had let Preston in and they had just reached the top of the landing.

"What's everyone looking so happy about?" he asked as he handed Nigel the wine he brought. "Is it because I have arrived?"

"We're discussing our first case for Foxbail Consulting," Sydney replied as she walked over to kiss his cheek in greeting.

"We're going to try and find the Jewel of Queens!" Karen exclaimed.

Preston stared at her, stunned. "The…the what?"

"Jewel of Queens," Aaron repeated grinning. "Haven't you heard of it?"

Preston turned his attention to Nigel, who had taken the new bottle of wine into the kitchen and was now opening the oven to take out the gourmet lasagna they had purchased and warmed. "Nigel? Is this true?"

Nigel stalled by setting the dish on the table, then returning for the bread. "Dinner's ready."

"Nigel?"

Finally, he met his brother's gaze, defiantly. "Yes, it's true."

Sydney removed the salad from the fridge and set it by the lasagna, watching the exchange between the two men, perplexed. "Is there a problem?"

Preston stared into Nigel's eyes for a few seconds more, then finally turned to her and smiled. "No, of course not." He stared at her for what seemed like forever, and then cleared his throat. "I…I'm just surprised, that's all."

Karen and Aaron settled at the table as Nigel refilled their wine glasses.

"Why?" Sydney demanded.

Preston pulled out a chair, but did not sit. He looked towards the head of the table, to Nigel, and watched his brother dodge his gaze. He turned his attention suddenly to the couple across the table and held out his hand. "I…I don't believe we've been introduced, I'm Preston, Nigel's brother."

Karen shook his hand and introduced herself and Aaron. After shaking Aaron's hand Preston finally sat down.

"Do you know anything about the Jewel of Queens, Preston?" Karen asked once everyone was seated.

Preston flushed and placed fidgeted with his napkin. "Ah...no, no, just...as I said the stories. What I mean is...well...the story of it going to a commoner." He looked at Nigel, a sudden desperation in his eyes. "Right, Nigel?"

Instead of answering, Nigel poured everyone another glass of wine.

"Every story or myth has a basis in fact," Sydney reminded as she settled in her chair. "And we're not going to steal the Jewel; we just want to verify its existence."

"Yes. Quite." Preston nodded, and again his gaze slid to Nigel, who had taken a sudden interest in his food. "I…I think it's a brilliant idea," he admitted and watched Nigel's head shoot up in surprise.

"Do you really think so?" Nigel asked quietly.

"I really do. I think it would be a ...worthwhile venture."

Nigel still wasn't convinced, this was Preston after all. "And…you don't mind that it's me?" he asked. "Doing it?"

Preston reached for the salad and set a hearty portion in his separate bowl. "I think you were meant to do it, Podge."

Nigel actually grinned at the hated nick-name. "Thanks, Preston." He paused. "You could help, if you like?"

Preston beamed at him. "I'd love to."

* * *

Karen was the first to find information on Eloise Grayson.

"Eloise went away to Greece." Karen explained as she and the others sat around Nigel's small dining table two days later. "We searched through hundreds of birth certificates, but Nigel was right, most of the records from the 1940's and back had been burned up in the fires during the Blitz." She smiled and took Aaron's hand. "Then Aaron had the brilliant idea to check out old newspapers and microfilm, because a lot of the war stories seemed to survive."

"Yes, I've the paper cuts and eye strain to prove my worth!"

Everyone smiled or chuckled.

"We managed to find a news article stating that Charlotte was one of only two women that had been picked for a student exchange program to Greece in 1955, but I couldn't find anything else out after that." She grinned. "Unless my bosses wants to send me to Greece to keep looking?"

"I think that's fair..." Nigel began and then ducked playfully when Sydney tossed a potato chip at him.

"Nice try." she smirked at Karen. "Maybe next time."

"When Charlotte passed away, the Jewel must have been left to Eloise," Aaron said.

"So, it's a dead end then?" Preston decided and picked up his bottle of beer. "Time to drown our sorrows, I reckon."

Sydney scowled. "There has to be more to find here without going to Greece." She looked at Nigel. "Who do we know there that we could ask to check into it?"

"I'm not sure, Syd. I lost contact with a good portion of our associates when I moved here."

Sydney thought for a moment. "I might have some numbers somewhere, but they'd probably be in the database at Trinity and right now my files are in storage, until we find a new base to set up."

"I really tried, Syd," Karen offered. "Aaron even called every Grayson in the Greater London area but we had no hits."

"You did remarkably well, Karen," Nigel insisted as he gazed across the table to Preston. "I wouldn't have expected you to find anything, and so quickly."

Karen smiled. "Hey, I'm like a dog with a bone. If there is something to find, I find it." She sighed. "I just wish I could have found more."

Sydney shrugged. She couldn't afford an excursion to Greece, she needed to limit her funds as much as she could until Foxbail Consulting was set up properly. "Well, we tried, Nigel."

"I think there's still a chance," Preston pressed. "To do it justice."

"What do you mean?" Nigel demanded. "We looked and there isn't anything, so it…it's better to leave it for awhile."

"We've already started, so we may as well finish it."

Nigel glared at his brother from across the table. "Just let it alone, Preston."

"You may not get another chance to…learn if it's true."

"Yes, Nigel," Karen agreed. "You shouldn't give up. There still has to be a way to prove your mother's story…"

"I don't need to prove it!" Nigel lowered his head and scratched on a groove on the table. "It…it's just a story. It isn't important…"

Sydney sensed an inner turmoil inside Nigel and covered his hand with hers. "It is important," she insisted softly. "It means something to you and that makes it important."

Nigel curled his fingers around hers but didn't meet her gaze. "Just drop it, Syd."

"Nigel and I may have…found something," Preston began, again looking at his brother who glared at him.

Sydney looked from one brother to the other, puzzled. "Oh?"

"Yes…um…well, we dug about in the archives and…and the city records and such, well it took quite awhile really. We must have looked through thousands of bits of paper and archive films." He indicated his right thumb. "I received numerous paper cuts myself and OY!"

Preston glared at Nigel and massaged the leg that had just been brutally kicked under the table. "What was that for?"

"We're not doing this now."

"And I say it's now or never!"

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

"I most certainly do know, and if you'd stop being such a twat you'd know it too!"

Nigel stared at Preston angrily, but remained silent.

"Now, as I was saying, we found out…OWW! Bloody hell, Nigel, that hurts!"

"Nigel, stop beating up your brother," Sydney requested, wishing she understood whatever animosity was going on between them.

Perhaps Nigel was just being jealous of Preston, as he had in the past; although she couldn't fathom why he would try and deter the very investigation he had started.

"What did you find out, Preston?"

Preston finished rubbing his leg and glared at Nigel. "Right, well…We managed to find out that…um…well that Eloise did return to England and that she actually met and married a fine young Englishman."

"Really?" Sydney looked at Nigel again, who was now sitting stone silent and staring at the table. "How did you ascertain that when Karen couldn't find anything else on her after she went to Greece?"

Preston blinked. "We... went through marriage certificates of course, from um…1950 onto 1970. We managed to come across one for a woman named Eloise and a man named Ashton, married in 1963."

"That's fantastic!" Karen crowed. "Do they still live here?"

"Did you get an address?" Aaron asked. "Can we go see them?"

"They did live here," Preston replied. "However they…they passed away some time ago."

Everyone at the table deflated.

"How sad."

"Great, another dead end."

Sydney was looking at Nigel and Preston, both had grown quiet. Something was off here. "Did they have any children?"

"Yes, and are they living?" Karen demanded. "Do you think Eloise might have left the Jewel to them?"

No one at the table answered her, for everyone's attention was suddenly on Nigel.

"I didn't want it to be this way, Syd," Nigel murmured. "I'd wanted to plan something more…elaborate but…" He glanced at Karen. "I'd forgotten how damn good Karen was at finding out things."

"What are you talking about, Nigel?" Sydney frowned as an odd shiver went through her. "What's going on?"

"There's more to the story, more that I didn't tell you." Nigel peeked at Preston.

"Perhaps we should leave you two alone for this?" Preston suggested, but Nigel shook his head.

"No, it's fine and we can trust Karen and Aaron, I am sure." Nigel's voice became softer, more serious. "We…Preston and I, we know what the Jewel of Queens is."

"You do?"

"What is it?"

"How do you know?"

"The Jewel of Queens was a final request made by Anne Boleyn," Nigel stated. "Before she was arrested and later beheaded, she had it fashioned from a pendant that had been given to her as a wedding gift from her husband, King Henry VIII. It was a last act of defiance against him. Anne had it consecrated by a Catholic Bishop and with it made a plea to God that He allow her daughter Elizabeth to be Queen and that Elizabeth would never fall victim to the schemes of men, that she would always be true to her own heart."

"Elizabeth I never married," Karen commented. "She was known as the Virgin Queen."

"It was said she was in love with Lord Robert Dudley, who she couldn't marry due to his already being married," Preston agreed. "However I think it was more true to her mother's wish. I think she was far too smart to allow herself to fall for any man that might try and usurp her position as Queen or allow anyone to pressure her into a loveless marriage."

"Elizabeth I bequeathed her mother's gift to the next reigning Queen, Elizabeth II," Nigel continued quietly. "Two women who understood the sacrifice that ruling a country entailed, and the promise that was to be kept in the wielding of this gift. It was with this promise in mind, that it was offered as a gift of affection and shared grief to Charlotte Grayson."

"And we're back to the dead end again," Karen sighed.

"No, we're not," Preston denied. "Eloise and Ashton did have children."

"Well?" Sydney demanded, upset at the idea that Nigel had kept this from her and wondered why he would so such a thing. "Girls, boys, Chihuahuas? What?"

"Sons," Nigel added as he fiddled with the coaster. "They had two sons."

"Okay, so they had two sons. Do we have names? Addresses?" Sydney looked at Nigel, suddenly impatient. "Nigel?"

Instead of answering her, Nigel continued the story. "Having no daughters to pass on the gift her mother had given her, Eloise bequeathed this treasure to her youngest son,"

Karen's gaze flew across the table to Preston and she noticed that the older brother's eyes looked suspiciously moist and, as she realized the truth, she felt tears prick her eyes as well.

Nigel swallowed hard as Preston looked to him encouragingly to continue the story. "A son who…would sit for hours as his mother would recount the tale of a gift that once belonged to a Queen, and who made him promise to never reveal their greatest family secret to anyone but…" He finally met Sydney's gaze. "The person who owned his heart."

Sydney shifted in her chair, uncomfortable that she couldn't understand what was going on.

"Sydney," Nigel pulled from his pocket a small velvet box. "This is the Jewel of Queens."

He opened the box and nestled inside was a ring. A huge emerald, three to four karats at least, nestled inside a golden crown wreath, with the twinkle of tiny diamonds and emeralds accenting the wreath in perfect, gleaming 16th century gold.

"It's exquisite!" Sydney gasped. "But, I don't understand...How...Where did you...?"

"Eloise married a man named Ashton Bailey," Preston announced. "Her mother; our grandmother, was Charlotte Grayson."

Karen's hand flew to her mouth in shock as Sydney sat there, stunned.

Sydney's eyes widened as Nigel plucked the ring from its nesting place and dropped to one knee beside her.

He took Sydney's left hand, could feel her tremble against his fingers. "In all the relics we have hunted, all the artifacts we have found over the years, there is one priceless treasure that has surpassed all that I have seen. One more precious than Egyptian architecture, Aztec gold, or even a royal gift from a Queen. You, Sydney."

Sydney's eyes flooded with tears, but she didn't blink, afraid to look away for even a second and have it be a dream.

"To you, I reveal the Bailey family secret, a secret that has been kept for almost fifty years." Nigel had to stop and clear the lump of emotion from his throat her tears caused him. "I ask that you keep our secret, accept this ring and embrace all the history that surrounds it."

Still Sydney was speechless and Nigel pressed forward.

"Become my Queen, Sydney. Queen of my heart, and of my soul." He stared deep into her eyes. "We have always found each other, even when we were lost and alone. Marry me, Sydney, so neither of us will ever be lost again."

Sydney's emotions almost overwhelmed her, she couldn't speak, couldn't move, all she could do was watch him position the historic and probably priceless ring at the tip of her third finger. She knew the real deal when she saw it and this was the _real_ deal.

The ring belonged in a museum or with the royal jewels in the Tower of London. It was a discovery that had baffled historians for years and yet, there it sat, in the hands of a simple, but brilliant Englishman, and he was offering it to her.

Karen had both hands over her mouth now and was visibly bouncing in her seat. Preston and Aaron stared at them, waiting anxiously for Sydney's reply.

"Sydney?" Nigel became nervous from her lack of response and prodded her. "Say something? Please?"

She was nodding before she could stop herself. "Y…yes….yes…" She flushed as Nigel slid the ring onto her finger, a perfect fit. She dropped to her knees, knocking over her chair, and threw her arms around him. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Karen squealed as the men cheered and applauded.

Nigel rose with Sydney still hang on him and held her tight. He didn't hear the commotion; he could only hear Sydney's heart beating against his as he whispered in her ear. "I love you so much, Sydney."

She sniffed and kissed him. "Likewise," whispered, in awe of the moment.

"I'm sorry I mislead you."

She laughed and sobbed at the same time. "Don't be!" Her heart was overflowing with the knowledge that he had made it so uniquely connected to her love of history. "I could...never have imagined..." She clung to him. "Oh, Nigel." She was so happy she couldn't speak. There were no words to convey her joy, only tears and touch and the feel of his heart against hers. "I…I my life just doesn't work right without you."

Karen squealed. "Best proposal _ever_!"

Preston found the champagne he had hidden in the refrigerator. "Yes, very well done, indeed."

Aaron held out his hand to Nigel and smiled. "Well done, mate."

Nigel shook his hand and the moment he released Sydney he had a squealing, bouncing, blonde to contend with. He laughed as Karen threw her arms around him in a ferocious hug and then around Sydney.

"I'm so happy!" she exclaimed and hugged them both again.

Preston held out his hand to Nigel and smiled. "You made a good choice."

Nigel smiled and pulled him in for a brotherly hug. "Thank you," he said and meant it for the first time since he could remember.

"So, is it true then?" Aaron asked as they all settled back in the chairs as Preston ordered a bottle of champagne. "The story about the ring?"

"It was what was told to us by our mother," Preston agreed. "She never waivered in the telling of it."

"It would be easy enough to authenticate, wouldn't it?" Aaron asked.

"Who cares if it's true?" Karen insisted. "This has to be the best proposal ever!"

Nigel flushed and Sydney gave him a kiss that almost knocked him out of his socks. He moaned a little and suddenly wished they didn't have all these people in his place.

"I can vouch for that." She looked at the ring. She didn't care if it was true or not, but her heart told her it was, because Nigel would never lie to her. "I'm a little nervous about wearing it though, if the story is true." She looked at Nigel. "It has to be worth a fortune, Nigel, or possibly even priceless. Are you sure…?"

"You mean more to me than anything, Syd," he replied easily, then raised an eyebrow. "But if you lose it you will be in big trouble."

"Right!" She held her left hand to her chest. "Karen, find me a security company that does safes that wrap around your hand!"

Everyone laughed.


	36. A Touch of Wistfullness

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine but the story is. Please do not copy, print or reproduce without author's permission. Just a little quip before the wedding chapter. Enjoy and please review.

**CHAPTER THIRTY SIX**

Sydney allowed her eyes to leave the road long enough to glance over at Nigel sitting beside her, going through sheets of potential buildings for Foxbail Consulting. His glasses were perched on the edge of his nose and his brow furrowed thoughtfully over the papers; completely absorbed as if he was doing research for an actual relic.

Her heart filled with love and adoration for him and it was a chore to pull her gaze away from him. Ever since his amazing proposal she found herself watching him, studying him more often. She could hardly believe they were going to be married, after all this time. She loved him beyond a doubt, but the best part, the absolute cream in the pudding, was that he was _still_ her very best friend.

She glanced down at the ring on her finger, enjoyed how it sparkled in the light, and reminded herself to get it appraised. She was aware that to Nigel it had more value emotionally than money wise and she did respect his family secrets, for they would now be her family secrets. She shivered at the little thrill that gave her.

Ancient family secrets aside, they had to be practical. No amount of money could replace the ring, but it would still be good to have it appraised and insured, just for their own sake. No one would know that the ring was actually the Jewel of Queens.

She wasn't sure how to broach the subject, remembering how touchy he had become when Aaron had made his comment about someone eventually wanting to know the worth of such a treasure. She decided to just throw it out there.

"Nigel?"

"Yes, luv?"

She grinned again and had to restrain herself from doing a little dance in her seat. She felt ridiculously foolish, she had certainly had men use terms of endearment with her before, but there was something different about it coming from Nigel. He made her feel like a school girl with a crush and she was fully enjoying it.

"Um…I really, really love my ring."

"I know," he replied without looking up. "I was there when you got it."

She smirked. "It's enormously precious, Nigel."

"So are you." He marked a large cross through one of the papers, having made some internal decision, and moved on to the next.

"Well…I think, because it is so precious, it…it would be a good idea to get it appraised."

"Stop, Sydney."

"We could do it privately," she protested. "No one would have to know and it only makes sense…"

"Stop!"

"But, Nigel…

Nigel glanced over his shoulder. "Stop the car, Syd!"

Sydney slammed on the breaks, luckily there wasn't a lot of traffic on the road ahead of her or behind on the small two lane roadway. She pulled off onto the shoulder. "What is it?" she demanded. "Are you sick?"

He shook his head. "No, no. Turn around can you?"

Sydney glanced behind her, waited for a car to pass then quickly made a U-turn. "What is it? Where are we going?"

"There!" He pointed to a long driveway with a For Sale sign on it.

Sydney turned into the gravel driveway and within seconds a beautiful old Brownstone came into view. The drive turned circular and she parked at the steps of the magnificent building.

Nigel hopped out of the car, excitedly. "It's perfect, Syd!" he insisted running around the car and practically pulling her out of the car. "Can't you see that it's perfect?"

Sydney stared at Nigel then back at the brownstone. It was at least three stories, constructed of Triassic sandstone, with terracotta brick edging around the doors and lower turret style windows. Three separate chimneys reached towards the sky from an old fashioned, green gabled roof.

Hand in hand, they approached the steps and Sydney had to agree, it was perfect.

"We almost missed it," Nigel said as pressed the door buzzer. "I just caught a glimpse of it from the turn up the road."

Sydney nodded, pleased with his excitement. "Why didn't it come up in our property searches?" She pressed the door buzzer again.

Finally, an elderly woman with white hair answered. "Yes, can I help you?"

"Hello, my name is Sydney Fox and this is my…" She had been about to say associate, as she always had and caught herself.

"Fiancé," Nigel offered softly and barely resisted the urge to giggle. God, she made him feel seventeen again!

Another joyous shiver, Sydney could actually feel her cheeks grow warm. "Yes…um…"

"Nigel Bailey," he introduced and held out his hand to the woman. "We saw your For Sale sign and wondered if we might have a look around?"

The woman beamed at them. "Oh yes!" She stepped aside so they could enter. "Come in! Come in out of the cold."

A miniature poodle, with hair the same color as his mistress wandered up to them, sniffed and yapped once, then tried to jump on Sydney.

"Down Nefertiti," the woman warned and shooed the dog away, even as she smiled at Sydney. "She doesn't usually like strangers, but she seems to like you."

Sydney crouched to pet the dog. "She's beautiful. How old is she?"

"Almost fourteen, which is near as old as me in dog-years!" the woman laughed. "Oh but you don't know me yet! I'm sorry. I'm Betty, Betty Standish."

Sydney returned her smile and rose. "Nice to meet you." Sydney took in the gleaming hardwood floors and slightly vaulted ceilings of the hallway. A small chandelier hung from the ceiling and just down from that a spiral staircase led upwards. "Your house is beautiful."

"Oh, thank you." Betty crooked her finger. "Let's start in the kitchen, I've just made some tea and you both are welcome to a cup."

"That would be lovely," Nigel agreed. "Thank you."

They followed her down the hallway and came to a sliding door against the wall beneath the first landing of the stairwell. Betty opened the door and inside was an antique iron elevator gate, which she also pulled across and stepped inside the room.

"The stairs and I are not on speaking terms at the moment," she admitted as Sydney, Nigel and the dog slipped in; it was a comfortable fit for three people. "My niece had this installed for me just last year, bless her heart, and it works like a dream."

She closed the outside door and the gate and pressed the number 2 button and up they went. "I live in the apartments upstairs, so the tea is in my kitchen."

Nigel and Sydney glanced at each other. A choice of elevator and stairs would probably add to the asking price, but they remained silent.

A few seconds later they stepped out into a carpeted hallway and Betty led the way to the first door, which opened up to a large sitting room.

"I've lived in this house for almost fifty years." she stated as she crossed the room to an opening on the other side. "We purchased it a few years after the war. I believe it belonged to a Barrister at the turn of the century, then they moved and sold it to another couple who used to be a rooming house. During the war it used as a hospital and an home for children."

They entered a large, modern kitchen with new looking stainless steel appliances however rows and rows of copper pots hung on a rack over a large kitchen island that was covered in green granite. All the cabinets were polished oak, the counter top the same as the island.

"We found the house perfect for us and our twelve children, but I'm the only one living here now."

"Twelve children!" Sydney gasped.

"Don't you like children, Ms. Fox?"

"Well, sure, but twelve?" Sydney's womb hurt just thinking about it.

Betty shuffled over to where her teapot was nestled under a homemade tea-cozy and pulled three china cups from the cupboard. She set them on a tray, along with, matching cream and sugar, and plate of chocolate biscuits.

"Oh, allow me," Nigel offered, taking the tray from her fragile looking hands.

"Oh, thank you. What a nice young man." She shuffled back to the living area and settled on the sofa. "Just right here, is fine. Do you like your tea white or black, dears?"

"White, please," Nigel replied as he and Sydney settled in an adjacent love seat.

Betty poured their tea, added cream and indicated the sugar bowl. "One or two?"

Sydney asked for one and Nigel declined sugar.

Sydney accepted her cup. "It sounds like the place has had quite a bit of history." Sydney watched Nigel select a biscuit; he had an incredible sweet tooth. "Why are you selling?"

"I just can't take the damp weather anymore," Betty admitted as Nefertiti jumped up to cuddle into her hip. "I'm moving Arizona to live with my daughter."

"Well, we certainly like what we've seen so far," Nigel commented finishing his tea and setting it on the table; eager to get a look at the place.

"Are you looking to start a family?"

Nigel glanced at Sydney, looking for a sign of sadness or regret and was pleased that there wasn't one.

"We're looking to set up a consulting business," Sydney replied.

"Oh? Are you lawyers?"

"No. Professors of Ancient History."

Betty almost spilled her tea in her excitement. "Really? Both of you?" She set her cup down on the coffee table and clapped her hands together. "This is fate! That's what this is!"

She popped up and hurried over to the wide window seat, filled with pillows. She tossed the pillows aside, pulled open the bench top started rummaging through it. "It's here somewhere, yes, I know it is."

Nigel glanced at Sydney. "Think she's off her nut?"

She cast him a scolding glance, although she was thinking the same thing, and managed to paste a smile on her face as Betty returned to them holding an old photo album.

"See here, now just look at this." She plopped the book down on the table opened to a fine looking Englishman with a beard and wearing safari gear. "That is my Raymond. He was an Archeologist!"

Sydney's smiled. "That's your husband?"

"Yes." She looked at them, could see their barely hidden confusion. "Oh, don't you see? I didn't want to sell my home. I only listed it yesterday, and here the two of you are, two people interested in history, just like my Raymond."

They smiled at her, happy to be in her favor.

"Would you mind if we had that look around?" Sydney asked.

She waved at them. "Oh, help yourselves," she insisted waving at them. "Take a tour and let me know if you have any questions. Most of the furniture can be included if you like, as I can't take it to Mary's small place."

Surprised the woman would just allow them to wander about her home, alone, they rose and headed back into the hall. The second floor all held large rooms, furnished in a mixture of modern, antique and even some furnishings from the sixties and seventies. Two of them had fireplaces.

"I wouldn't mind keeping the antiques," Sydney admitted as they moved on towards the third level.

"It's huge, Syd!" Nigel caressed the hard carved banister. He preferred modern conveniences in his home, but he had a fondness and respect for real old-world craftsmanship. "What would you think of having the office down stairs and living in the apartments above?"

Sydney grinned and nodded. "That's exactly what I'm thinking." She was excited as they stepped onto the third floor, which held three separate, smaller garret style rooms. While investigating one room, Sydney noticed some grooves on one of the walls and when she pressed against it a panel slid open that led to several stairs.

"Oh, what's this?"

"Syd, that may be private for Betty. She may not want us snooping…" Nigel was wasting his breath because Sydney was already headed up the stairs. "Hello! Are you listening to me?"

She waved a dismissive hand as they ascended into a huge attic. "Wow!" She moved towards the small windows and peered outside, then turned to Nigel. "Wouldn't this make a perfect storage area?" she insisted. "The windows have shutters and we could cover them with plastic to keep the cold out." She glanced up into the angled ceiling. "We'd definitely have to moisture proof, but it seems pretty dry now."

Nigel regarded her, smiling as she made a list of all the things she could do with the place. She was in her element and he knew, regardless of the asking price, they would be purchasing the house.

She grinned at him. "It's perfect!"

He couldn't resist any longer and caught her as she started for the stairs, spun her around and kissed her soundly.

"Mmmm, what was that for?"

"Because you're lovely when you're excited."

She laughed and they headed down to the main floor. Sydney could envision exactly where they could set up offices for her and Karen and two of the downstairs rooms were large enough to host a small seminar or discussion when they decided to venture into that field.

They stepped into the last room, off of the kitchen and Nigel gasped. Walls and walls of books every where you looked. A polished wooden rail separated the upper level from the top, complete with a mobile ladder to get to the second level. It was the library of Professor Higgins himself!

"My…God!"

Sydney enjoyed the way Nigel's face lit up at the sight of so many books. "A quiet little teaching job surrounded by hundreds of lovely books?" she murmured, sneaking up behind him.

"So…do you think they're included?" he asked, a touch of desperation in his voice. "I…I mean…the books? She…she couldn't possibly need all…Sweet Minerva!" He spotted a specific book on the shelf in front of them, walked over and reverently picked it up. "I…It's a first edition." He turned the cover to show the title 'ULYSSESby  
Joyce James.

Sydney gaped at him and quickly moved to inspect the book herself. It was in premium condition, the binding as sleek and secure as if it had been made yesterday. "W…what's this go for on the current market?"

"Oh, just about sixty thousand, American."

Sydney's hands dropped away from the book. "Put it back!" she hissed worried they might damage it some how.

Nigel carefully slid the book back in place and then felt his knees go week as he spotted another first edition next to it. "Syd…I think I'm going to cry."

She hurried over to see what he was overcome by and her eyes widened as Nigel delicately pulled the book out. The binding was in bright violet cloth and stamped in blind and gilt on the front and back.

"I am going to cry," Nigel admitted as he reverently opened the book titled Great Expectations. He opened the cover and almost passed out. "And it's signed." He dropped into a nearby chair and fanned himself. "We can't possibly afford this place."

Sydney frowned, in full agreement. The asking price must be astronomical. "Well, let's go find out," she sighed and they made their way back to Betty's apartment.

"So, do you love it?" the older woman asked immediately.

"We do," Sydney admitted. "What are you selling it for?"

"Only £6,500,000! A steal for this area."

Nigel almost choked on his tongue, but he looked at Sydney without betraying his shock or sorrow.

Sydney smiled and shook Betty's hand. "We'll certainly think about it."

"Oh do, I'd love for you to have it."

They said good bye and headed out.

"I'm sorry, Syd," Nigel said as they walked back to the car. "I should have known it would be too much."

She squeezed his hand and tried to swallow her disappointment. The only way that they would get that much money, is if they sold the relics that had been recovered from the Gural Nataz to private collectors.

Neither she nor Nigel agreed to allow the rich to covet historical artifacts that should be enjoyed by everyone. Besides, she had found homes for the majority of the relics all ready by donating them to various museums and historical aid funds.

She settled behind the wheel, her mood decidedly less cheerful. "Well, it was worth a try." She pulled around the gravel circle and back up the drive to the main road. "I'm sure something else will come along that we can afford."

"Right, then." He started riffling through his papers again. "The next one is just a few miles south of here, it's an industrial area."

Sydney forced herself to be positive. "Great, maybe it will be attached to a warehouse we can also use for storage."

Nigel nodded but his disappointment was evident. He wished he had the money to buy that brownstone. Sydney had been over the moon for it. Even if he got what he was asking for his family home, combined with his savings and Sydney's, it wouldn't be enough for the home.


	37. Do You Take This Man

DISCLAIMER: Rh not mine blah blah….Well here it is, part one of the wedding chapter. Please review.

**CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN**

Nigel put his arms behind him as Derek helped him on with his suit jacket, and then turned him around to straighten his tie. Nigel slapped his hands away. "I know how to tie a bloody tie!"

"I'm just checking it, relax," Derek assured and stepped back. "You want to look your best don't you?"

"I look fine!"

Derek grabbed a lint brush. "Fine is not your best…"

Nigel snatched the brush way from him. "Do stop fussing, Derek," he requested and tossed the brush in a chair. "My suit is fine, my tie is fine, my hair is fine, everything is fine." He turned towards the full length mirror to confirm his words. "Yes, see here? I look good."

Derek grinned at Nigel's modesty. The Englishman looked magnificently debonair and would be turning heads of every woman in the room, for sure, and probably several men as well.

He shrugged into his matching black jacket a little annoyed that, for a groom Nigel seemed to have absolutely no anxiety. "It's my job to make sure you look perfect."

Nigel touched up his hair, which he had cut short and spiked just a little on top. "No one will be looking at me, they'll be looking at the bride."

"Don't bet on it, ol' chap," Derek smirked and watched Nigel brush down the sleeves of his jacket. The dark suit looked first-rate on him, accented with the blue cummerbund and crisp white shirt it was a charming ensemble. "I'm firmly heterosexual, but I'd do you."

"Too late!" Nigel grinned. "I'm taken."

"Aren't you nervous at all?"

Nigel shook his head and reached for the pale blue carnation for his buttoner. "Nope."

"You do realize you're sacrificing your bachelorhood here?"

"Yep."

"No more women after this. No going out with the boys for a beer, or gambling at the track?"

"I don't want any other women. The only person I've every really gone for a beer with is you…" He peered over his shoulder at Derek. "And for that you kidnapped me, and I don't gamble."

"Well, in that case you've been missing out!" Derek grinned. "Let's blow this joint and I can show you all the fun you haven't been having!"

"No thank you," Nigel replied. ""I've had my fill of your type of fun for quite a while."

Derek grinned. "You didn't like your bachelor party?"

"It was great, what I remember of it anyway." Nigel slid his boutiner in place on his jacket. "However, it was a little upsetting waking up naked in a Roman Bath with you and three women, instead of the English pub we started in."

Derek shrugged. "Roman Baths are good for your completion."

Nigel smirked. "We were _in_ Rome, Derek!"

"Of course we were, where else would you find a proper Roman Bath?"

"Sydney thought you had run off with me again!"

"What happens between a groom and his best man is sacred." Derek winced and rubbed his shoulder. He was still feeling the effects of Sydney's ire after they arrived back in England. "Besides, it was only overnight."

Nigel picked up a ring box and opened it, staring back at him were two platinum bands. "You're damn lucky she didn't kill you."

Derek grinned and regarded the Englishman, the pure joy on Nigel's face as he traced the wedding bands was something Derek had never witnessed before and he was surprised that the sheer happiness of his friend actually brought a tear to his eye.

"Good God!" Nigel exclaimed turning and catching Derek swiping at his cheek. "You're not actually crying are you?"

Derek recovered quickly and made it into a joke. "I can't help it," he insisted morosely. "When I think of all those women you'll never get the chance to bang. All those hidden treasures, waiting to be plucked and plundered."

"You have my permission to pluck and plunder on my behalf," Nigel grinned and handed Derek the rings.

"Bless you, my child," Derek offered and slipped the rings into the pocket of his jacket. "But for future reference there is a back stairs to this place and a car is standing by, should escape be necessary."

"You are such a giant knob!"

"Thank you…Wait…Did you just call me a big dick?

Nigel laughed and nodded as there was a knock on the change room door. "Come in!"

"If you're Sydney, stay out!" Derek tossed.

The door open and a bright, sparkling blonde dressed in hot pink burst through and ran straight at Nigel.

"Claudia!" he exclaimed and caught her in his arms.

"Honeybun!" Claudia gave him a big kiss on the mouth, hugged him again then peppered his face with kisses. "You look so delicious!" She giggled and finally pulled back enough to let him breathe. "If you weren't marrying Syd, I would like, totally have my way with you!"

He beamed at her. She looked like a marvelous swirl of cotton candy, though he was almost blinded by the bright colour of her outfit. "I thought you couldn't attend?"

"I wasn't supposed to," Claudia agreed. "My boss, like, told me I had to work on a special project. But I told him, look, this is, like, my two favorite people in the world and I just have to be there. I mean, my Gawd, doesn't he have any sense of romance? So I like, told him, either give me the time or I quit."

"And he gave you the time?"

"No," she shrugged. "So I quit."

"Claudia!" Nigel stared at her horrified. "For the love of God! Why did you do that? We would have understood that you couldn't make it and you loved that job!"

"Oh puleeze." She tossed back her hair, which had grown to her shoulders. "I have people, like, hounding me all the time to come work for them. I'll get another job like that!" She snapped her fingers. "Besides, who cares about a silly designing job when my two best friends are getting married?"

Nigel's heart warmed and he embraced her again. "You wonderful, wonderful woman." He cradled her face and touched his lips to hers, making her blush for the first time since he had known her. "Thank you, Claudia. Sydney will be so thrilled."

"What about you?"

"There aren't words for how happy I am to have you here."

She giggled, her cheeks turning the shade of her dress. "Aww." She hugged him again. "I better go see her before it's time to start the party."

"It was nice seeing you again, Claudia," Derek offered as he opened the door for her.

She glanced at him and huffed. "Don't you talk to me you…you…honeybun stealer!" She jabbed a finger into his chest. "You just watch out Mr. FBI man, cause if you do anything to hurt my friends again I'll punch your 'need to know' lights out!"

She offered Nigel a brilliant smile and a wave, glowered at Derek and flounced out.

"I'm CIA." Derek called after her and rubbed his chest. "Is no one ever going to forgive me for that?"

Nigel, who had been trying to hold back his smile, let it through. "I forgive you, mate," he assured and slapped Derek on the back.

Derek grinned. "There's still time…"

"Shut it!" Nigel laughed as he slid his wallet into the pocket of his jacket. "You were the one who got me into this…"  
"And as a good friend, it is also my duty to get you out!"

"I don't want out. Trust me."

"You're funeral." Derek sighed and tossed an arm over Nigel's shoulders. "Fine, let's go get you hitched."

* * *

Sydney stood looking out the window at the fragrant small country side that surrounded the small church. Karen had run down stairs to check that everything was as it should be, unable to keep her hand out of the organizing; and Sydney had wanted some time alone so it worked out well.

This was her second time in a wedding gown in just under a year, but this time there were no doubts clouding her mind. Instead of the elaborate, exotic affair she had spent months planning with Alan, she and Nigel had put together their perfect wedding in just two short weeks, including only their closest friends and family.

She turned and caught sight of her reflection in the full length mirror and her eyes misted. She wore Isabelle's wedding dress and felt her grandmother's spirit surrounding her the moment she had stepped into it. She'd chosen a store bought creation for her wedding with Alan, and that alone should have told her that she hadn't felt right about it.

Her hair was down in the back and braided loosely in the front, similar to a Roman crown, and layered with tiny blue daisies. Her make up was subtle, just a hit of it to bring out the color in her eyes and lips.

She and Nigel had decided on only one person to stand for them; she had chosen Karen, again, and Nigel, oddly had chosen Derek Lloyd. There was no denying the two men shared a friendship, although Sydney still didn't trust him.

She smiled at that and turned away from the mirror at he knock on the dressing room door. "Come in."

Randal Fox entered the room, having to duck to get through the door. "Hey Scootchie."

"Hi Dad," she offered and accepted his kiss. He looked so incredibly handsome in his grey suit. "You look yummy."

He grinned adjusting his tie. "Jenny seemed to think so. We were almost late because of it."

"Ewww! TMI, Dad!"

"Doesn't it make you proud that your old man is still desirable to a woman?"

Sydney slapped her hands over her ear. "I think I've gone deaf."

"Don't worry, I have the Power Point version scheduled for the reception."

"Dad!"

"Well, we want to make sure Nigel gets it right. He isn't your usual type, after all."

"How would you like it if I bragged about my sexual exploits?"

Randal grinned and slid his hand forward to find her ticklish spot. "That reminds me, I need to have a talk with young Nigel about his intentions towards my daughter."

"Dad!" She squealed and slapped him away. "He's marrying me! I think his intentions are pretty clear!"

Randall decided to stop teasing her. "You look beautiful, baby. Your grandmother would be very happy to see you in that dress."

Sydney smiled and turned back to look at her reflection. A tingle of sadness flickered in her eyes. "I wish mom was here."

"I do too, baby." He put his hands on her shoulders, looked at her through the mirror. "And she is, maybe we can't see her, but she's here."

Sydney nodded. "I know."

"She'd be very proud of you, sweetheart."

She turned to him. "Really?" she asked and there was just a token of insecurity in her voice. "I almost married the wrong man before, what if…"

"Don't even think it!" Randall warned good-naturedly. "I'm not putting on another of these monkey suits, unless I have a grand child to christen or they are putting me in the ground, so you'll be on your own!"

Sydney tried to look hurt, but she ended up smiling instead. "You wouldn't do that to me."

"Don't bet on it." He caressed her cheek. "But I wouldn't worry. I think you got it right this time."

"Do you think he's having second thoughts?"

Randal shook his head. "He looks at you the way I looked at your mother," he whispered as he kissed her cheek. "He's The One, baby. Make it count."

Sydney blinked furiously at her tears. "Thank you, Daddy."

Another knock startled them both and simultaneously they called out for the person to enter.

"Claudia!" Sydney squealed in surprise and opened her arms as their former secretary hurried forward only to stop a foot from Sydney. "What's wrong?"

"Oh my Gawd!" Claudia cried and tears sprung to her eyes. "You look like…like…totally a princess or something!"

Sydney grinned. "I won't break, I promise."

Claudia rushed into her arms and in that precious moment, there was a feeling of mother and daughter. "Oh, Syd, I couldn't not come," she bawled. "I love you guys so much, you're like…my family."

Sydney held her, touched by the admission, and that she had flown all the way from New York to be here. "It wouldn't have been the same without you, Claudia." She pulled back and accepted the handkerchief her father offered to wipe at Claudia's eyes. "Does Nigel know you're here?"

She nodded and took the handkerchief to blow her nose as she stepped back. "He kissed me," she smiled. "A really nice kiss too." She suddenly looked at Sydney horrified. "OH! But it, like, wasn't that kinda kiss! I mean I don't think…"

"Relax," Sydney soothed."He loves you as much as I do."

"Awww…" Claudia's eyes teared-up again. "Now I'm gonna cry again."

"Well we had better take you downstairs and let you compose yourself before the flood gates open again," Randal suggested kindly.

Claudia's eyes widened and instantly her hormones kicked in. "Holy Crap! Who are you and do I have to kill to make you mine?"

"Claudia! This is my _father_, Randal Fox."

Claudia gaped at her. "No way!" She looked back at Randall as he moved to the door. "He doesn't look like anyone's daddy!"

"Thank you, Claudia," Randall smiled as he opened the door and gestured for her to precede him through

"Oh, wait!" She retrieved a box that had been leaning against the wall in the hallway. "I made this for you." She set the gift on a table and indicated Sydney open it.

"You shouldn't have," Sydney smiled as she pulled off the ribbon, lifted the top and pushed back the tissue. "Having you here is more than…oh Claudia!" She pulled out the long white cape, edged with intricate crystals in the softest satin. Tiny patches of lace created a delicate pattern; almost identical to the stitch work on her dress. "It…It's magnificent!"

"I had a feeling that you were gonna wear your grandma's gown so I thought you'd like to have something to go with it."

Sydney's eyes prickled with tears at the thoughtful gift and she turned to her, eyes shimmering. "Help me put it on?"

Claudia quickly took the cape and fastened it with too clips at Sydney's shoulders. When she stepped back, she looked like a royal Empress. "Wow!"

Sydney looked at her reflection, loved how the cape sparkled when she moved, and flowed in a waterfall of white down her back to the floor; leaving almost two feet of silken train to trail behind her.

"You do good work, Claudia," Randall admitted as Karen entered, stopped and stared.

"W...wow!" she said. "Sydney…you…Nigel is going to swallow his tongue when he see you!"

Sydney laughed, overwhelmed with joy. "Well, let's hope not, I have uses for that tongue!"

"We'll let you two finish up. Claudia?" Randal offered his arm and shot her a charming smile. "Why don't you tell me all about yourself on the way down stairs?"

Claudia looped her arm through his, glanced back at Sydney and mouthed 'Oh My Gawd!'

Sydney waited for the door to close and then she and Karen got busy on the finishing touches.


	38. Here Comes The Bride

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine but the story is. Please, please review. Well, here it is…the moment at least a one or two of you have been waiting for. Hope it is all you hoped for and if it isn't (or is) please review and tell me all about it! ;)

**CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT**

Derek and Nigel headed down stairs, there weren't many as the church was small, and paused as they passed one of the front windows. "Why don't you make sure everyone is where they're supposed to be?" he suggested to Nigel.

"Isn't that supposed to be your job?" Nigel teased and then frowned when he saw Derek's expression. "What is it?"

"Just something I need to take care of." Derek pointed Nigel towards the chapel area. "Go on."

Nigel scowled but did as instructed as Derek stepped outside just in time to head off an uninvited guest. "Sorry, this party is by invitation only," he insisted, blocking the doorway.

Alan glared at him. "I need to see Sydney and you are not going to stop me."

"Wrong again," Derek assured and wished that Nigel had let him wear his weapon. "Sydney doesn't want to see you. So turn around, get back in your car and fly back to wherever you came from."

"You're not going to interfere this time, Lloyd," Alan growled, standing his ground. "I should have put a stop to it before but I didn't realize what you were up to, but you're not gonna stop me this time. Sydney needs to hear what I have to say…"

"She heard what you had to say Devaut, and she made her choice. Now be a man and leave her alone to enjoy it."

Alan shoved at Derek. "Get out of my way!"

Derek shoved Alan back. "Look, I really don't want to dirty up my clothes, I have a wedding to attend, so settle down before you get hurt."

"Fuck you, Lloyd!" Alan swung, Derek dodged and reciprocated with a right cross to Alan's jaw that landed him on his ass. Alan wiped the blood from his lip, rolled to his feet and charged.

Derek felt the breath leave him as Allan's head plunged into his solar plexus and the two fell to the ground. "You really wanna do this?" Derek grunted and landed his elbow against Alan's face. "Fine…we do this."

Derek's head swung back as Alan caught him on the left cheek, so he brought his leg up into Alan's stomach.

The two continued to grapple in the dirt, until suddenly they were pulled apart by a pair of strong hands.

Derek lifted his gaze to a furious Randall Fox. "Oh shit."

"What the hell is this?" the older man demanded, practically tossing Derek to the side while he gripped Alan's shirt and hauled him to his feet. "This is my daughter's wedding not a schoolyard!"

"He started it," Derek offered lamely.

"I don't care who started it, it's finished."

Claudia rushed to Derek with a tissue to place against his bleeding lip. "Awww, I didn't think you cared."

"I don't," she denied. "But you're not gonna spoil today by looking bloodied and beat up."

"I want to see, Sydney!" Alan demanded, shrugging off Randal's grip. "I am going to see her. We have to talk."

"You are not seeing her!" Derek refused, angrily as he wiped at his lip with Claudia's tissue. "She's marrying Nigel, get over it!"

"She doesn't know what she's doing! She's confused." Alan looked at Randall. "Please, I just want to talk to her, tell her I'm sorry for trying to change her and I won't anymore. I…I just need her to know…I need her to give me another chance…"

"You had your chance!" Derek snarled.

Randall pointed a finger at him in warning. "That's enough," he decided. "Go soak your head and cool off." When Derek didn't move right away, Randal's eyes narrowed. "That wasn't a request, Lloyd."

Being a CIA agent meant that Derek was a hard man to intimidate, but the giant of a man standing before him wasn't just anyone. Before he could have asked for Sydney's help with the Paracelsus Scrolls, it was standard procedure to research her, her family and any known associates. What he found out about Randall Fox was more than enough to have him quietly follow the order, without question, and leave Sydney under the impression that her father was _just_ a dam builder.

"Let's go inside, Claudia," he decided. "The air out here is getting stale."

Claudia looked at Randall who nodded.

"It will be fine, sweetheart. Alan and I are going to have a talk."

Claudia nodded and accompanied Derek back inside the church.

"Not you." Randall caught hold of Alan's arm when he went to follow. "Now then," he sighed. "As I understand it, you still have feelings for my daughter, correct?"

"Yes, sir!" Alan scowled, he never used that term, and yet Randall Fox seemed to command respect. "Look, I'm really not trying to cause a scene. I just want to talk to her, that's all."

"Are you going to tell her anything she doesn't already know?"

Alan hesitated, startled by the question. "I…She's making a mistake."

"Then it is her mistake to make."

"But I love her!"

Randall put a gentle hand on Alan's shoulder. "I know you do, son, and so does Sydney. She loves you, just not the way you love her."

"She does! At least she did until that damn Englishman came back into her life!"

Randall tilted his head and stroked his chin, thoughtfully. "Let me ask you this. If you and Sydney were truly meant to be together and if she loved you as you love her, would Nigel really make that much of a difference?"

"He confused her," Alan insisted. "That damn Lloyd practically pushed the two of them together every chance he had. It was his plan from the start and Bailey just used Sydney's weakness and confusion to steal her away from me."

Randall regarded Alan quietly. "Son, I understand you're upset. I understand that you love Sydney and wanted to marry her, but something my daughter has never been is weak…"

"She is when Bailey's around! She almost died and she…"

Randall held up his hand to silence Alan. "She has almost died several times and as I understand it, this last time it was Nigel that was responsible for saving her life."

"That doesn't mean he owns her! Can't you see she's mistaking gratitude for love?"

Randall honestly felt sorry for Alan, who was obviously so caught up in his own misery that he couldn't see the truth. "Alan, I am not particularly pleased with the dangerous aspect of my daughter's life, but it is her life and it is not up to me, or you or anyone to tell her how to live it or who to love…"

"But she…"

"Nigel Bailey is an honorable, generous and respectful person. I've seen this with my own eyes. He would never deliberately encroach on another man's territory, anymore than he would disrespect the happiness of someone he cares about."

"He has! He kept her for a week and used his damn wiles to turn her against me!"

Randall smirked. "Son, I've known Nigel for many years and believe me when I say he has no wiles. He's the shyest person I have ever met when it comes to women."

"That didn't stop him from stealing Sydney away from me."

Randall shrugged. "Then good for him, because I can tell you, it wouldn't have been easy for him. See here now, bottom line is Sydney makes her own choices, she always has and she always will. As her father I can only advise her when she asks for help, which she doesn't do often because she has always been strong and she has always known exactly what she wanted. If you ask me, she was confused when she agreed to marry you. She's not confused anymore."

Alan realized he was losing the argument. "She's dependant on him, Sir. She doesn't love him. You know what they were like before, and she thinks that as long as she keeps him happy, marries him he won't leave her again." He shook his head. "I know that his leaving hurt her, but it was because of their partnership, friendship and because she grew to rely on him. Not because she loved him."

"What is love if not a partnership and friendship?"

"It's more than that." Alan threw up his hands in frustration. "He won't make her happy! She needs someone strong and dependable to help her make decisions. She needs someone who can be her equal and…"

"Stop right there." Randall straightened to his full height and was Alan could visibly see the older man was no longer the relaxed peacekeeper. "My daughter is strong, motivated, intelligent and sometimes pig-headed when it comes to getting what she wants. She is not an easy woman to live with, but I am proud of her for not cow-towing to the stereo-type of what people thing a woman should be."

"I agree, but…"

"I'm not finished!" Randall snapped and Alan's mouth quickly shut. "I agree that Sydney needs someone as unique as she is, but you cannot challenge the fact that Nigel Bailey has been by her side for too many years not to be considered her equal. He has been with her in every possible scenario and has never faltered. He has always put her choices before his own fear and discomfort and has risked his life for her on multiple occasions; as a father I couldn't ask for more than that from any man."

"I don't deny that he's been a good friend…"

"Nigel accepts Sydney completely as she is and is neither intimidated nor jealous of her abilities. He does not feel less of a man for loving a strong, intelligent woman and that, son, makes him her equal. That makes him stronger than you or me, or any other man we will ever meet."

Alan faltered. "I know they're close, but…"

"Think about that, Alan. Have you ever known anyone to be that close to Sydney? That dedicated to her, and even after…what…a half a dozen years apart they are still just as devoted?"

Alan considered that. "I don't…"

Sydney stayed loyal to people she cared about, remained friends with several of her ex-lovers, but she had never really stayed in contact with anyone over any great length of time. She had never needed to and no one had ever caused her the kind of distress that Nigel Bailey's leaving caused. People went in and out of her life without much notice.

He knew Sydney had a unique relationship with Nigel Bailey, everyone knew they were close. Everyone knew.

Alan closed his eyes as the thought penetrated his fear and bitterness. "No."

"I'm sorry." Randall put his hand on Alan's back in comfort. "She isn't for you, son."

Alan blinked at the tears in his eyes and lifted his eyes heavenward, just in time to catch sight of Sydney in the upper window. God! She looked beautiful. She was laughing at something or someone in the room with her and didn't see him. "She looks happy."

"She is."

Alan sighed, defeated and nodded. He held out his hand to Randall, a man who he respected even more than ever before. "I'm…sorry. I just wanted…" He shook his head. "If she is truly happy then…I can be content with that."

"Then be content, son. She'd want you to be happy too."

Alan nodded and moved to his car. He took one last look at Sydney in the window, then climbed behind the wheel of his rental car and drove away.

Randall watched crossed his arms across his chest and watched until the car disappeared, then he turned and looked up at his daughter. A ball of emotion formed in his throat as she caught sight of him and waved, laughing as Karen pulled her away.

"Thank you, Nini," he whispered to his long dead wife. "Our daughter is truly priceless."

He cleared his throat, glanced at the road to make sure there weren't going to be anymore interruptions and headed for the front doors. "Glad I didn't have to hurt that boy."

He stepped into the chapel area and looked around, pleased with Sydney and Nigel's choice of venue. The church was small and, according to Nigel, had been built in the late 1700's, so it had the lovely old world charm of period architecture, complete with stone walls and beautiful stained glass windows.

He drew back and waited just outside the chapel doors for Sydney to appear.

Nigel was leaning against the second pew talking to his friends Margaret and Nick, as Margaret bounced her son on her lap.

"Are you nervous?" Nick asked.

"Not a bit."

"I'd be nervous."

Margaret jabbed him with her elbow. "You're already married, twit!"

"Yeah, thank God I only have to do it once!"

Nigel grinned. "Is Celeste upstairs?"

"Yes. She is nervous. She doesn't do well around crowds."

Nigel glanced around and smirked, this gathering could hardly be called a crowd.

Jenny sat in the front pew on the left wearing a pale blue summer dress with a small matching waist jacket and a small bundle of joy on her lap; Randall's newborn son. Derek was currently making faces at the baby and causing him to squeal in delight.

Nigel still didn't know what Derek had gone to take care of, but nor did he really care. His only concern for the day was Sydney and getting married. Besides, he knew better than to try and pry anything out of his friend when it was 'need to know'

To Jenny's right, was the Sultan of Endostan and his daughter, Princes Alia. They had been good friends to Sydney for years, due to Sydney's friend Daniela marrying the Sultan. After Daniela's murder, which Sydney and Nigel had uncovered with their discovery of the Star of Nadir, the Sultan and his daughter remained close friends to both of them.

Behind them were Claudia and a couple of Professor's from Trinity that had known Sydney for over a decade along with Eric and Suzanne Dalt. Nigel had mixed feelings about seeing them, as it brought up memories of Anna and a time when he had lost all control. However he respected Sydney's relationship with them too much to let old haunts spoil the day.

In the third pew were a few of Sydney's students that she had kept in touch with after they had graduated. Nigel was more than a little relieved not to see a single one of her ex-boyfriends.

On the right side of the quaint church were Preston and his new bride, along with Margaret and Nick, whom he was talking to. Behind them were several of his students including the ones who had basically saved his life. Even the usually wild looking Reed had dressed for the occasion, his hair was only one color and he wore a dark suit.

Overall, the guest list was perfect and Nigel was pleased to share the happiest day of his life with only those he truly cared about... And Preston, he supposed.

He was startled when he saw a figure appear at the back, stand there for several seconds, as if unsure what to do, then turn away.

"Excuse me, Nick."

"Hey! Do we need that car?" Derek teased as Nigel started down the isle.

"No!" Nigel laughed, then to everyone else. "No body move! I will be right back."

His comment generated several good-natured chuckles as he stepped into the outer hallway, then pushed open the front doors. He spotted her getting into a car.

"Cate!"

She froze, her shoulders slumped and slowly she turned. "I'm sorry," she muttered, clutching her handbag with both hands and lowering her eyes. "I shouldn't have come. I…"

Nigel reached her and took both her hands in his. "Why shouldn't you?" he asked gently. "I invited you, didn't I?"

She bit her lip and shook her head. "I'll spoil it, Nigel. Sydney will…"

"Sydney understands that I want you here, Cate." He caught her chin and lifted her gaze to meet his. "The past is the past."

Cate's eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "She told you," she whispered. "I'm so sorry….Nigel. I…I never meant…"

"Ssshhh." He pulled her into his arms, felt her tremble against him as he held her and stroked her hair. "She knows that, Cate. In her heart, she knows."

Cate struggled to collect herself and pulled away, reaching into her purse for a travel pack of tissues. "I didn't mean to cause a scene," she insisted as she angrily wiped at her eyes. "I…I was going to just come and see…see you get married," She blew her nose and stared into his eyes. "I am really happy for you Nigel…for you both. Truly."

"We know that."

"I was going to slip out before…before she saw me."

"Cate," Nigel caught another tear with the edge of his thumb as it slipped out. "You are our friend, we do want you here."

She shook her head, miserably. "Sydney doesn't. She hates me."

"No, she doesn't." He looked back as Derek called to him and pointed to his watch. Nigel waved back and returned his attention to Cate. "Come on," he said as closed her car door and folded her hand in his. "I want all my friends with me today."

She offered him a wobbly smile, wiped at her eyes again and followed. "Are you sure?"

He squeezed her hand as they entered the church. "I love you, Cate." He turned to her so that she wouldn't misunderstand. "We've carried enough burdens between us to know that, even if it isn't the way we thought, we still need each other. I will always be your friend, and so will Sydney, in time."

"I love you, Nigel," she sighed and wished with all her heart things could have been different. But he was right, there was a strong feeling that would always connect them. He had given her a dozen chances and each time she had hurt him. She wouldn't throw this last chance away. "Anything you need from me I will give you, you and Sydney both."

He nodded, kissed her cheek and settled her next to his brother, then jogged to the front to stand beside Derek, just as the music started.

Celeste, in a lovely green and white dress appeared solemnly in the doorway and looked scared to death. Nigel winked at her and smiled and she managed to move past her stage fright to make it down the isle, tossing out rose petals from her small hand basket. As soon as she reached Nigel she dropped the basket at his feet and threw her arms around him.

He gave her a solid squeeze and kissed her cheek, as Nick rose, chagrinned. "You did great!" he whispered in her ear. "Best Flower Girl ever!"

She smiled at him shyly, scooped up her basket and allowed her father to pull her back to their pew.

Nigel continued to smile as Karen headed down the isle towards him. "You look beautiful," he whispered when she reached him and took her place on the other side.

She beamed at him. "Wait till you see Sydney!"

Then the music changed and Sydney appeared at the back of the chapel on the arm of her father. Nigel gasped in a breath, and then forgot everything else. He was stunned. A thousand things hit him at once. He was getting married! Sydney was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen! What if it didn't work? What if he couldn't keep her happy? What if they quarreled and she left him? What if she wanted him to be the wife and her the husband?

He felt a light slap on the back.

"Breathe!" Derek hissed, keeping his hand on Nigel's shoulder; the Englishman had started to turn blue.

Nigel started coughing and it broke the spell. He straightened and lifted his gaze to Sydney again, saw the concern in her eyes. He managed to smile at her, she smiled back and all his doubts fled. She was beyond anything he could ever imagine having and that knowledge sparked a flood of tears, which he blinked furiously to dispel.

"Daddy," she whispered to Randall. "Nigel looks like he's going to cry."

"He loves you, Scootchie," he whispered back. "Remember that look and hold onto it whenever times get rough."

"Who gives this woman?" the preacher asked.

"I do," Randall advised and then to Nigel. "No take-backs now!"

"Dad!"

Everyone laughed as Nigel accepted Sydney's hand and tried to clear the giant lump from his throat.

"No worries, sir," he assured and lifted Sydney's hand to his lips. "You're all mine."

"Not yet," the preacher teased and caused another few giggles from the spectators. "We have a few things to do first."

Derek leaned forward and in a loud stage whisper said to Nigel. "There's still time to make a run for it."

Sydney reached around Nigel and bopped Derek on the head with her bouquet. "How'd you like to be the best 'dead' man?"

Derek grinned and straightened up behind Nigel as the preacher began.

Sydney's heart overflowed with nervous happiness as the preacher gave his ceremonial speech on the importance of marriage. She and Nigel had decided to write their own vows and she was frantically trying to remember them.

He looked so incredibly confident and handsome in his suit that is was hard for her to connect him to the timid, inexperienced TA she had once known. He'd matured well over the last few years and she had to admit, despite the pain it had cost her, being away from her and their life in the field had done him good. It had been worth the previous heartache, for he had finally crawled out from under her shadow and become the man he was meant to be.

They both held their breath when the minister asked if anyone objected to the wedding.

"I'm armed, people," Derek lied. "So let's keep it nice and quiet."

This sparked a flood of slightly uneasy laughter from everyone and Sydney and Nigel grinned when no one commented.

The preacher announced the beginning of their vows and they turned to face each other. Nigel went first as he took her hands.

"Sydney, from the moment we met I knew that you would change my life forever. I wanted to be by your side, for as long as you would allow it, and although times were sometimes hard and doubts were rampant, I never once considered not having you in my life. I thank you for believing in me, for teaching me, for being my friend, my mentor, my savior from the sad, boring life I had led."

Sydney's eyes filled with tears, but her smile was brighter than the sun, especially when Nigel had to clear his throat again and fight for control.

"You brought out the very best in me, showed me that anything was possible and that there were things truly worth fighting for. Love being the strongest. You are where my heart is, and the reason that I believe in love."

He stopped as his voice cracked with emotion and Sydney's heart ached at his exquisite torture.

"I am so completely in love with you," he whispered.

Karen and Derek exchanged a quiet look from behind their friends, whose eyes were only for each other, and smiled.

Sydney's heart turned over in her chest and she couldn't resist caressing his face with her free hand. "Likewise."

Nigel leaned into her touch and it was the encouragement he needed to carry on. "I am so happy to be standing here today with the love of my life, my best friend, my soul mate, my everything. I promise to be the best man that I can be for you. I promise to comfort, support and defend you against anything and anyone that tries to bring you sorrow. I promise to be forever faithful to you, heart, body, mind and soul. I promise to never ask more of you than what you can give and above all else, I promise to always give you all that I have and all that I am, for all of the days of my life."

He lifted Sydney's hand to his lips, pressed a delicate kiss to her skin, before sliding the gold band onto her finger. "It is by this ring and this ceremony that I make you that which you should have been so long ago. I love you and never shall let you go."

Filled with nervous tension after such a dedicated devotion, Sydney accepted her ring for Nigel from Derek, took Nigel's left hand in hers and began. "Dearest Nigel. For whatever reason, fate chose to delay our union several times, but I believe that everything has a reason. The reason in this case was to show me just how much you truly mean to me. My life changed the day you walked through my door and I have never been the same."

Caught up in her nerves, her mind blanked on what to say next and her tongue stopped working.

Nigel squeezed her hand. "Breathe, baby."

His voice pulled her from the abyss. She took a deep breath, and then stared deep into his eyes; eyes that were shining with so much love for her that she couldn't look away from the beauty of it.

"I promise that I will always be there for you, in good times and bad. May we always laugh together like we do now, and may the stormy days we encounter and the trials we face only ever make us stronger. I promise to respect you as an equal and to recognize that your interest, desires and needs are as important as mine."

Nigel squeezed her hand. "Does that extend to watching football?"

"Don't push it."

Laughter from their guests gave Sydney the release she needed to continue.

"I promise to celebrate with you, to encourage you, to always believe in you and to always be proud of the man you are, and who you are to me. I promise to always listen to the words you speak, and listen even harder for the ones that you don't. Most of all, I promise to never again doubt your love for me, and to remain by your side beyond anything that may part us."

She slid the ring on Nigel's finger, surprised to find that both of them were trembling. "It is by this ring and this ceremony that I pledge my undying faith and devotion to you, the man of my dreams, for all the days of our lives."

They held each other's gaze for a long, silent moment.

"I'm bloody crying, aren't I?" Nigel sighed suddenly.

Sydney laughed and wiped at his cheeks. "We both are," she said as she accepted a tissue from Karen for her own eyes. "It's a sign of a strong man."

Nigel sniffed, wiped at his face and held her hand as they turned back to the minister. "I'm bloody Hercules then."

The minister smiled at them and then to their audience. "By the grace that God has given me, the authority of parliament and the blessing of her Majesty the Queen, I now announce you, man and wife." He grinned. "You may kiss your bride."

Nigel and Sydney faced each other again. "My wife," he murmured, enjoying the sound of it.

"My husband," she purred and accepted his kiss to the joyous applause of their friends and family.


	39. Let's Dance!

DISCLAIMER: RH not mine but the story is. Please do not copy, print or reproduce without author's permission. Please review

**CHAPTER THIRTY NINE**

The reception was far more crowded than the church had been, it was a party after all, but it was still under a hundred people. Nigel and Sydney had included friends and colleagues in the area they had often worked with in recent years to attend; reasoning it would also give them the opportunity to promote their new business.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, the happy couple will have their first dance as husband and wife."

Nigel smiled and took Sydney's hand as they rose from their chairs. "Here we go."

"I'm ready if you are," she smiled as the music began.

_How can I convince you what you see is real  
Who am I to blame you for doubting what you feel  
I was always reachin', you were just a girl I knew  
I took for granted the friend I have in you_

"It's hard to believe," Nigel sighed as they waltzed around the floor.

"What is?"

"That we made it this far. To this particular point in our relationship."

"Why?"

He shrugged. "It would have been hard to picture, back when we were…you know, just friends."

_I was living for a dream, loving for a moment  
Taking on the world, that was just my style  
Now I look into your eyes  
I can see forever, the search is over  
You were with me all the while_

"Are you having second thoughts?"

"Don't be daft, why would you even ask me that?"

"You're the disbeliever."

He grinned and pulled her closer as he turned them around the floor. He marveled how perfectly they fit together. "I'm not a disbeliever, I'm just commenting on how…Amazing our journey has been. How incredibly lucky I am to have someone like you in my life."

_Can we last forever, will we fall apart  
At times it's so confusing, these questions of the heart  
You followed me through changes and patiently you'd wait  
Till I came to my senses through some miracle of fate_

Sydney's heart melted, both from his words and the lyrics of the song. "You're such a romantic, Nigel."

He spun her out, twirled her under his arm and back into his embrace. "Rubbish."

She grinned at his flush. "You are! It was one of the first things I noticed about you."

_I was living for a dream, loving for a moment  
Taking on the world, that was just my style  
Now I look into your eyes  
I can see forever, the search is over  
You were with me all the while_

"What was the first thing you noticed about me?"

"You're breasts."

Sydney laughed. "Nigel!"

"Well, you were wearing that bloody tribal outfit which left almost nothing to the imagination."

She grinned and slid her fingers up through his hair. "You pervert."

"Not at all!" he denied. "I kept it to myself."

"Yes, you certainly did." She pressed herself against him, deliberately and felt him falter, just slightly in his step. "What was the second thing you noticed about me?" She gripped his hair. "And if you say my ass I _will_ hurt you."

_Now the miles stretch out behind me  
Loves that I have lost  
Broken hearts lie victims of the game  
Then good luck it finally struck  
Like lightning from the blue  
Every highway leading me back to you_

"You're smile," he replied staring into her eyes. "I was utterly dazzled the first time you smiled at me, and every time since."

Sydney immediately softened again. "You make it impossible to stay angry at you."

"Excellent, my plan is working."

_Now at last I hold you, now all is said and done  
The search has come full circle  
Our destinies are one_

_So if you ever loved me  
Show me that you give a damn  
You'll know for certain  
The man I really am_

"I'm so happy, Nigel," Sydney sighed as she leaned her cheek to his and cuddled

closer. "Are you?"

"Beyond that, luv," he whispered and caressed her back. "I don't think I have ever been this happy and content."

"I'll remind you of that when my underwear is hanging up in your bathroom."

"Our bathroom, and I love your underwear, no matter where it is."

She laughed and was delighted when Nigel sang the last verse to her.

"I was living for a dream, loving for a moment. Taking on the world, that was just _your_ style."

Sydney smiled at his deliberate word change and felt her heart flutter when he brought her hand to his lips.

"Then I touched your hand, I could hear you whisper…" Sydney joined him in the last part and they sang to each other. "The search is over, love was right before our eyes."

Then, Nigel kissed his bride so tenderly that everyone applauded again. He flushed and touched his forehead to hers. "Promise we'll always be honest, Syd." He requested quietly. "Don't ever be afraid to tell me something, because nothing could make me stop loving you."

She blinked rapidly and hugged him, hard. "I promise."

"All right, all right," Randall Fox announced as he put a hand on Nigel's shoulder. "My turn, now."

Nigel bowed out graciously and turned over his bride, startled when Jenny caught his hand.

"You get to dance with me," she giggled and watched him flush scarlet.

Nigel glanced down at her eight inch platform heels. "Are you sure you can?" he asked with concern and she tossed her arms around him.

"Try and stop me!"

Randall smiled at his wife and the slightly panicked look on his new son-in-law, then smoothed down his suit and pulled his daughter into his arms. "I've been waiting a long time for this, Scootchie."

Sydney laughed and thought of her father's old fashioned style of dancing. "I hope I can remember how to do this!"

He smiled at her. "If you forget just hop up on my feet like you did when you were little."

_I hope you never lose your sense of wonder  
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger  
May you never take one single breath for granted  
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed  
_

Sydney had let her father pick the song they would dance to and she was pleasantly surprised by his choice. She inhaled the familiar scent of his cologne and for the first time in what seemed like forever, felt like she was six years old again.

"I love the way you smell," she sighed.

_I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean  
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens  
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance  
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance_

_I hope you dance  
I hope you dance_

"You've lost weight," he frowned as his large hand spanned almost completely across her back. "You're not on one of those silly diets again are you?"

"You always say that!" she grinned and pressed her cheek to his. "I'm fine."

_I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance  
Never settle for the path of least resistance_

"You'd better be careful, scootchie. A man likes to have a woman he can hold onto, not one that will slip through his fingers."

Sydney glanced over at Nigel who was trying to keep an appropriate distance between him and Jenny as they danced, and not be pushed against her ample bosom, but Jenny wasn't having any of it and seemed to enjoy flustering the groom.

She grinned. "Says the man who married Malibu Barbie!"

_Livin' might mean takin' chances, but they're worth takin'  
Lovin' might be a mistake, but it's worth makin'_  
_Don't let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter  
When you come close to sellin' out, reconsider_

"I've got plenty to hang on to, trust me. Barbie was never a triple E…"

"Dad!" Sydney threw back her head and laughed as Randal chuckled and spun her around. "Your wife is trying to molest my husband!"

Randall glanced over at Nigel and Jenny and grinned. "She's a hugger," he admitted and spun Sydney in his arms. "She can't help it, she's just…"

"All out there?" Sydney teased

Randall grinned and pulled her closer. "She is that."

_Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance  
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance_

I hope you dance  
I hope you dance

"Are you listening to the song, Sydney?"

"Yes." She smiled at him. "It's wonderful."

"Make sure you live by it."

"I couldn't do anything else," she sighed as he twirled her again and the spectators became a blur of color and smiles. It had been so long since she had been held in her father's strong arms. "I'm my father's daughter."

_(Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along)  
I hope you dance  
I hope you dance  
(Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder, where those years have gone?)  
_

"You certainly are," he agreed spinning her away from him and then back into his arms. "And you dance just like your mother."

Sydney's eyes welled up with tears. "Thanks, Daddy." She cuddled into him again, contented.

"I know it couldn't have been easy moving around so much, baby."

"It was an experience that I'll never regret," she assured.

_I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean  
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens  
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance  
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance_

"I used to think you needed more of a female influence growing up," Randall admitted. "When your Mom passed, I was completely out of my element trying to raise a little girl."

Sydney lifted her eyes to his. "You did great. I can't say I didn't wish mom had been there, but you did everything right, Daddy. You made me who I am today."

Randall's eyes shimmered. "I'm so incredibly proud of you, Sydney. I don't know if I ever told you that."

Sydney's throat closed up at the sight of her father's tears; she had never seen him cry. "I always knew," she whispered and kissed his cheek. "You showed me love every day of my life, Daddy. I always knew."

_Dance  
(Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along)  
I hope you dance  
I hope you dance_

Randal Fox hugged his daughter fiercely as the song ended, lifting her off her feet and holding her suspended for several minutes, before finally releasing her to the thunderous applause of their guests.

Sydney laughed and went to rescue her husband who was as red as a beat at this point. She gave Jenny a hug and a kiss then pulled Nigel towards the tables. "Did you make it?"

"Barely!" he muttered, unbuttoning his collar to get more air. They stopped at the head table and he extended his hand to Karen as another song, a little more up-beat began. "Come along Maid of Honor."

Karen smiled and hopped up, eagerly, causing Aaron to protest.

"Oy! Don't get too excited, now!"

"I love you to death, honey." She blew her new husband a kiss even as she caught Nigel's hand. "But every girl has to have her fantasies."

"I want him back!" Sydney laughed as she moved to the floor for her dance with Derek.

"No promises!" Karen returned as Nigel pulled her close. "Hi there, Mr. Fox," she teased.

"Watch yourself Mrs. Middleton." He pinched her lightly on the ear, even as he smiled. "Or I'll tell your husband about all those lovely little mini-skirts you used to wear around the office to drive me to distraction."

"You do that and I'll tell your wife about our kiss in the basement that time."

"Do so at your own risk," Nigel shrugged. "Syd's incessantly jealous you know. I can't be responsible for what injuries might occur."

Karen opened her mouth than snapped it closed and giggled. "Touché," she laughed. No way was she going to risk angering Sydney, even if she was fairly sure that Nigel was only teasing her.

"Last chance to ditch the Brit and run away with me," Derek offered as swung Sydney into his arms. "You know you want to."

"You read my mind!" she murmured as she let him spin her out again, then under his arm and back against his chest. "I reserved a separate room upstairs; we can sneak out without anyone noticing."

Derek faltered in the next step and gaped at her. "Excuse me?"

Sydney slapped herself against him and lifted her leg to his hip as he dragged her backwards reminiscent of a tango. "Nigel won't ever know, and we can have a standing arrangement for whenever you're in town." She caressed his face and then spun away from him.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "You can't do that to Nigel! It will kill him and…" He saw the triumph and laughter in her eyes and his worry eased. "You witch. Well played."

"Nigel told me about your teasing him before the ceremony," she admitted. "Did you really think I'd give him over for you? Puhhlease!"

He grinned. "Hey, a guy has to try."

"I appreciate what you've done for him, Derek." She paused as they danced around each other. "For us. With the Gural Nataz I mean."

"You're welcome."

"I know Nigel's intentions; I just need to know yours."

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean, Derek. What's your angle?" She twirled in his arms, back out again. "I know you're not doing any of this out of the goodness of your heart."

"Because I don't have a heart?"

Sydney remained silent and swayed to the music instead.

"I couldn't possibly have done it because you and Nigel are my friends and I want to see him happy?"

"I'm sure that is part of it," she reasoned as he gripped her hand and spun her into him a little too forcefully. "But I know you, Derek. You always have an agenda, so out with it, and don't give me that need to know crap."

Derek held her there, staring into her eyes and ignored the music, the occasion and everything else around them. "Fine," he replied calmly. "It's far easier to keep an eye on you two when you're in the same country." He spun her away from him, almost too fast. "And Nigel has influence over your decisions, so if I need your services again I'm sure he'll convince you to say yes; in the spirit of friendship."

Sydney's jaw dropped and she immediately lifted her hand to punch him. "You sonofabitch!"

Derek stepped forward into her space, caught her wrist, spun and dipped her low from the waist. "Careful, Sydney. You don't want to upset the groom, do you?"

Sydney glanced at Nigel and Karen from her precarious position and saw the concern in his eyes. She gave him what she hoped was her best smile then turned back to Derek and bared her teeth. "Get me up you asshole!"

He lifted her smoothly as the song ended. "Thanks for the dance."

"Don't mention it!" She stepped away from him, trying to swallow her fury. "Ever."

The song changed and others guests started moving onto the dance floor, but Sydney stalked away towards the powder room, quickly avoiding Nigel who had released Karen and was walking towards her.

Nigel stepped up to Derek had taken out his phone the minute that Sydney turned away from him, his face was grim. "What's wrong?"

"Yes, got it." Derek said to the caller and then turned to Nigel. "I have to go."

"Now? You can't wait a couple of hours?"

"I wish I could but…" He wiggled his cell phone. "Duty calls."

"Is it duty?' Nigel demanded and glanced to where Sydney had disappeared. "Or something else?"

"Nothing like that." Derek patted his shoulder and smiled. "It's hard to have a social life in my field, that's all. When they call. I go."

Nigel didn't believe Derek for a minute but didn't press it. "Where are you off to?"

"Sorry that's…"

"Need to know." Nigel said and almost smiled. "One of these days, Lloyd…"

Derek nodded at the warning and extended his hand. "I'm very happy for you both."

"Quit that rot!" Nigel pulled the agent in for a brotherly hug. "Thank you, Derek. For everything."

"Stay out of trees and away from caves from now on, would you? I can't keep pulling your ass out of the fire."

"No promises." Nigel pulled back to smile, their hands still clasped together. "Be safe and don't stay away too long, yeah?"

"No promises."

"Won't you say good-bye to Syd?"

Derek shook his head. "We already said it." And, at that very moment, he regretted that more than anything in his life. He shouldn't have let his temper get the better of him, but she would never have believed the truth, so he gave her what she wanted. Proved he was the bastard she thought he was.

Nigel nodded in understanding and then hugged Derek again. "You need to know," he whispered. "That you are my very dear friend, Derek Lloyd. I'll miss you."

The words pierced Derek's heart. He'd never had anyone to worry if he never came back from a mission before, not since he joined the agency. The simple confession caused a lump to form in his throat.

"You've had too much champagne."

Nigel grinned. "What do you expect when you don't bring the beer?"

Derek laughed. "No, my friend. I pay for the beer, _you_ go fetch it."

"Here now, let's not get personal."

"Okay, okay. I'll bring the beer next time."

"Promise?"

"On my honor." Derek grinned widely. "Be careful what you wish for though, because you never know when or where I might just show up." He leaned in and whispered. "Be happy, for both of us, my friend."

Nigel nodded. "I will."

Over the next several hours, everyone danced and ate, laughed and chatted. Then, Claudia crept up to Sydney and whispered something in her ear. Sydney nodded and touched Nigel's arm, interrupting his conversation with her father.

"Claudia wants to dance with you."

He smiled over his wife's head at the suddenly shy looking blond. "Excuse me Sir." He said to Randall as he rose and held his hand out to Claudia.

"Why are you so shy all of a sudden?" Nigel asked Claudia as they moved onto the floor and a slow song began.

She wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his shoulder. "I dunno," she murmured and closed her eyes. "I just, like…Didn't want you to think I was stupid or something."

"Because you wanted to dance?"

She nodded.

"Well, that is stupid."

Her head shot up and she glared at him, hurt, but before she could storm off he caught her hand and pulled her back into his arms. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." He kissed her cheek. "You've just never had an issue telling me what you want before."

"I know," she sighed. "But before it was, like…I dunno." She shrugged again. "I missed you so much." There were tears in her voice but she kept her face against his shoulder. "Both you guys."

He held her a little tighter. "I missed you too, scatterbrain."

She giggled and goosed his butt. "Be nice." She sighed as they moved to the music. "I'm tired of designing clothes."

"Hang on, I think my heart just stopped." He patted his chest. "Nope, false alarm. Carry on."

Claudia laughed and smacked her hand at his chest. "You're such a jerk. I'm trying to be serious here!"

"Well, what do you want to do then?"

Claudia was quiet for a long time, then finally she looked at him. "Can I come home?"

Nigel blinked. "Sorry?"

She immediately lowered her eyes again as the song ended. "Never mind." She stepped away and crossed her arms over her chest. "Thanks for the dance."

"Hey!" Nigel caught hold of her before she could walk away. "Tell me what you meant, Claudia."

She shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

Nigel glanced around, noticed that they were drawing attention and pulled her over toward the outside hallway of the reception room. "If it didn't matter you wouldn't have said it, now tell me."

"If you can't figure it out then it doesn't matter!"

God! "Claudia, don't do this to me. I've never been able to figure you out!"

She smirked. "It's just…well…Sydney was telling me about your new company and…and all that and…how you're going to be doing things like, well, before."

"Okay?" Nigel still didn't have a clue what she was on about.

"Well, I talked to Syd and she said it was okay, but that you had to agree because you guys were full partners now and I know you have Karen, but Syd said…she said she didn't want to make the decision for you and I really haven't felt happy since I left and I'll do anything you tell me and…"

Nigel finally registered her dilemma. She wanted to come back to work with him and Sydney. The idea of having her there, having all of them together again made his heart swell with pride and happiness.

He caught her failing hands and held them still. "It wouldn't be the same without you, Claudia."

Her head shot up again and she stared hard into his eyes, searching for a sign that he was teasing her. "R…really?" she gulped, shocked.

He nodded and pulled her in for a hug. "Welcome home baby."

Claudia clung to him and cried. "Thank you! Oh thank you. I know you think I was pretty useless before and I was, but I'm not like that now and I can do a lot of things and I'll work hard! I promise to actually file the files and to not be making personal calls or blackmail you to bring me presents or…"

Nigel pulled back and gently placed a hand over her mouth before she hurt herself. "Don't you dare be anyone but you, Claudia."

She beamed at him and hugged him again before hurrying off to tell Sydney the good news.

Nigel smiled and slowly followed her back to the ballroom. Claudia and Sydney were hugging and talking rapidly to each other, then Karen joined them and hugged Claudia as well so it appeared that Karen was accepting Claudia into the group.

He spotted Randall dancing with Jenny. She had put their son to bed with a sitter in the hotel upstairs and now the couple gazed into each other's eyes as if there was no one else in the room but them. He smiled, happy for them.

Preston and his wife were in an animated conversation with some of Nigel's students and a few people that must have been friends of Sydney's because he didn't recognize them.

"My how times change," he murmured to himself.

He never would have believed a few years ago that he would be married to Sydney Fox. Or that she would want to be married to him. Or that he was getting along with his brother after more than a dozen years of resentment.

He shoved his hands into his pockets, leaned against one of the pillars and regarded his loved ones. He was so deliriously happy that it was frightening. He wasn't used to this feeling and the cynic in him was just waiting for something awful to happen and ruin it all.

He and Sydney still had work to do. They needed to find a place to live, and a place to set up the business. They had to get the business up and running and start putting feelers out there for jobs. He wasn't too worried about it. It would be just like old times. He smirked, well, except that when Sydney and he shared a bed now they would really be sharing it.

God he was hot! He decided to step outside for some air and was immediately relieved when it hit him. It was a clear cool night, perfect fall weather and rare in England. The sky above was shining with stars and he immediately thought of Sydney, who could easily outshine them all.

He felt like doing a little Gene Kelly across the walkway, and was relieved that he had resisted when Randall stepped outside and joined him.

"Getting warm in there," the older man remarked as he perched on the cement railing. "You okay, son?"

Nigel didn't know if he would ever get over hearing that word. He knew that Randall called many people son, but it had been so very long since Nigel had it directed at him that the emotion it stirred inside him every time still surprised him. In that moment, more than anything else, he desperately missed his parents.

"Just needed some air."

"Of course," Randall agreed pulling out two cigars from his inside jacket pocket and offering one to Nigel. "Do you smoke?"

"Not usually." Although he had enjoyed a cigar, now and then. "However…it is a celebration after all." He accepted the cigar. "Thank you."

"There's something to be said for a good cigar," Randall advised as he snipped the tip on both and then lit them. "You don't need it every day, but it's nice to have once and awhile."

Nigel inhaled and nodded, glad when his eyes didn't tear up. "Absolutely."

"Nice party, hey?"

Nigel nodded. "So far."

"I guess I don't need to ask you anymore what your intentions are?"

Nigel coughed on the smoke he had just inhaled. "God, I hope not, sir."

"It's _Randall_, son, or Dad if you're up for it."

Nigel squeezed his eyes closed and wondered if the older man understood what a gift he was offering. "I…thank you…" He still wasn't sure yet which one he would chose, so he left it at that.

"Well, you're family now." Randall puffed on his cigar. "Although, I think I knew you would be from the first time we met on my boat."

Nigel glanced at him. "Sir?"

Randall raised an eyebrow.

"Habit," Nigel offered meekly.

"Hmmm." Randall met Nigel's gaze, squarely. "I had a sense of you, Nigel, even back then. You were shy, timid, but smart as a whip and ready to jump whenever my daughter asked you to. Not Sydney's usual type, but I thought you were just what she needed."

"Really?"

Randall nodded. "She needed someone to look after," he replied simply. "She was so used to just looking out for herself, but you being as green as you were, gave her the opportunity to feel responsible for another person. I think, in a way, it matured her, made her more grounded." He inhaled for a long moment, before continuing. "And I thing it made her happier too, to know there was someone she could depend on no matter where she went."

Nigel didn't know what to say, so he remained silent and looked up at the stars again.

"Jenny and I are headed back home tomorrow."

"Oh," Nigel said, quietly. "Sydney will be disappointed."

"She'll be busy with you and this new business you're starting." Randall propped his cigar between his teeth and reached into his jacket pocket. "Which reminds me." He pulled out a long white envelope. "This is yours."

Nigel accepted the envelope. Although they had issued a statement on the invitations that they did not wish to receive gifts, many people brought them anyway. He assumed as Sydney's only living relative Randall would want to give them something.

"I'll let Sydney open it, thank you."

"No, you open it."

Nigel knew better than to argue, so he slit the end and pulled out the cheque, which he almost immediately dropped. "Good God!" He looked at Randall, shocked. "S…Randall, we…we appreciate the offer but…I mean we…this is too much!"

"No it isn't." Randall puffed on his cigar, then dropped his massive hand on Nigel's shoulder. "You kids have recovered some of the most priceless treasures on the planet and not once did you keep even a token of their worth."

"They belonged to everyone…"

"I understand your feelings on that, Nigel. Sydney is the same way and that is why I believe in both of you and this new business." Randall squeezed his shoulder. "Sydney has always been good with her money, and I am sure considered all her start up costs, but no matter how successful you are at what you do, you spend the first two years, minimum in the red, paying off the debt you began on start up." He indicated the cheque. "This will make that first two years a lot easier on you both."

"But…"

"No buts now. This is an investment, not a gift." His gaze softened. "I never had the chance to give my daughter a lot of things. I was too busy putting food on the table and trying to see she got a good education. I couldn't even give her much of my time because I had to go wherever the work was. Let me do this for her, for both of you."

Nigel looked at the cheque in his hand and wondered if Randall had been saving all this time or had mortgaged his and Jenny's house to give it to them. He understood where his father-in-law was coming from, but it was still a lot of money.

Finally he put the cheque back in the envelope and slid it in his pocket and extended his hand, sincerely. "Thank you, Randall. We'll make good use of it."

Randall shook Nigel's hand as Sydney stepped outside. "I know you will, son."

"Hey you," Sydney pursed her lips at Nigel. "Looking for an escape route?"

"Never!"

She smiled and stepped into the curve of Nigel's arm. "Good, because I don't want to have to hunt you down."

"The invisible leash is ever tethered, my love." Nigel wrapped his left arm around her and pulled his right further away, so the cigar smoke wouldn't bother her. "Just chatting with your father and enjoying a lovely cigar."

Sydney shook her finger at Randall. "Don't you give him bad habits, Dad."

"There is nothing bad about a good cigar, Scootchie." Randall patted Nigel's shoulder. "Be good to my baby, Nigel."

"I promise," Nigel replied as Randall kissed Sydney's cheek, crushed out his cigar and moseyed inside.

Sydney immediately tried to take Nigel's cigar. "Give me that disgusting thing!"

"Here, now!" he grinned and held it away from her. "You shouldn't come between a man and his cigar!"

"Nigel!" She reached over his head for it.

"Get your own!" he cried. "Your dad said I could!" He giggled and pushed away from her, took a long draw of it then crushed it out in submission to her.

She put her hands on her hips and nodded. "That's better." She squeaked as he grabbed her suddenly, dipped her back and put his mouth over hers. She struggled in laugher as the cigar smoke he'd been holding trailed up between their lips. She slapped at his chest until he righted her.

"You ass!" she laughed, then grabbed him by the face. "I'll show you how to properly kiss your wife!" She planted one on him that made his knees go weak.

"You win!" he gasped and squeezed her to keep himself up right. "I surrender."

"Are you happy, Nigel?"

"You keep asking me that. Why?"

She shrugged. "I just want to be sure."

"Are you unhappy, Sydney?"

"Of course not!"

"And neither am I." His thumb caressed the rings on her finger. "You wear my mother's ring. You are my heart, Sydney. I could never be anything but happy with you."

"Oh, Nigel." She wrapped her arms around his neck and they swayed to the music in their hearts, beneath the twinkling stars on this, their wedding night.


	40. Alone At Last

DISCLAIMER: RH characters not mine, but all other aspects of the story are, so please do not print, copy or reproduce without my permission. Mature, sexual scenes ahead, after all it's a honeymoon! Please review!

**CHAPTER FOURTY**

"Thank God that's all over!" Nigel sighed as he dropped onto the enormous king size bed and fell backwards.

Sydney smiled as she carefully hung up the beautiful cape Claudia had made for her in the closet of their honeymoon suite. They had decided to just have a weekend at the luxury hotel and spa where they booked for the reception, then get back to work looking for a place to live and set up the company. They would fly to Italy for a real honeymoon for a week, once they were established.

"I think everyone had a good time," she decided as she kicked off her heels and sighed as her toes dug into the plush carpet in relief. "Didn't you?"

"Yes, of course." Nigel sat up too quickly and the champagne he had consumed immediately went to his head. "But it has been a long day, Sydney."

She nodded, walked over and crouched in front of him to slip off his dress shoes. "Poor baby," she cooed as she set his shoes aside and removed his socks. "Did your mean old wife keep you dancing too long?"

Nigel smiled down at her as a thrill spiked through him. Sydney was his wife. It was real. "I love you."

She smiled at him, rose and pushed her hands inside his jacket to slip it off his shoulders. "Likewise." She tossed it to the nearest chair. "You, Mr. Bailey, are wearing far too many clothes."

Nigel slid his hand carefully up the soft material of her wedding gown, caressing her hips, her back, and then reached up to remove the few pins in her hair to allow it to flow freely over his fingers. "Are you trying to seduce me, Mrs. Bailey?"

Sydney shivered. "Say it again."

"Mrs. Bailey." Nigel whispered as he pulled her forward and nuzzled her neck.

He had been surprised that Sydney would accept his name, as she was very stubborn about having her own identity, but she told him that she would only use her maiden name for the business, as it was more recognized, but everything else she would be his wife.

She hummed in contentment as his lips caressed her skin. "Are you…hungry?"

"Very," he growled as he reached one hand up to fondle her breast.

She laughed and then moaned in protest when he suddenly stopped and slid her off him. "Hey!"

He rose and offered her his hand. "I don't want to rumple your grandmother's dress, Syd."

She smiled at his thoughtfulness and accepted his hand. "My man is so considerate."

"Yes, he is also ready to ravish his woman. So…let's get this thing off of you."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, and neatly avoided his hands from getting to the buttons on her dress. "In a minute," she promised and put her lips to his ear. "I've got something that will knock your socks off."

"I'm not wearing any socks."

"This will put them back on and then knock them off."

"Hmmm." He kissed her cheeks, her eyelids and her forehead. "Everything about you knocks my socks off, Syd." He found her mouth and kissed her until they were both breathless. He couldn't get over their chemistry; it was so intense and yet so natural. He wondered if they would always be this needy for each other.

Sydney shoved her fingers through his hair as his tongue danced with hers. She moaned and delighted in the feel of his hand against her back, pressing her closer and proving the affect she was having on him.

Reluctantly she pulled back and turned so he could unfasten the back of her dress. She turned around and kissed him again. "Give me five minutes," she requested and headed into the bathroom.

Nigel watched her go and took a deep breath. They had made love before, but some how tonight felt so very different and he was surprised to find that he was actually nervous.

He lit the trio of candles on the wall mantel, and the two on each side of the bed then switched off the main lights. He poured them each a glass of complementary champagne and set them over by the bed, then pulled off his shirt and trousers and climbed beneath the covers. He pulled back the sheets on Sydney's side, then picked up both glasses and waited.

Sydney appeared in the doorway of the washroom, bathed in the light from behind her, wearing a long sheer white negligee. Her hair, a waterfall of chocolate against a sea of white satin and lace, fell loose across her shoulders and down over her back. Beautiful, entrancing dark eyes peered at him from behind half-lowered lashes, long and black and thick. Her lips glistened, her skin glowed. She was the vision of a Greek Goddess.

She leaned one arm against the doorway, provocatively. "Hiya."

Nigel's response was almost immediate beneath the covers. "You're…" She took his breath way. Never had he seen another woman so beautiful, so sensual and so real. "W…wow."

She smiled, delighted with his response and sashayed her way to the bed. She pulled back the covers and climbed over him, rather than going around, straddling him. She accepted one of the glasses. "For me?" She took a sip, wet her lips. "Yummy."

Nigel was appalled to find that his hands were shaking. He'd never wanted a woman so much in his life as he wanted Sydney at that moment, but it was more than want, more than need. He couldn't fathom the feelings that were swelling inside of him.

He gulped down his champagne and set the empty glass on the nightstand. "May I taste?" he whispered and almost lost it when she dipped her finger into her glass, wet her lips with the liquid and leaned forward.

"Absolutely."

Their lips touched and it was heaven. Nigel's hands found their way to her hips and he gently pulled her closer against him, moaned in response to the intimate press of their flesh.

Sydney pulled back, dipped her finger in her glass again, then trailed the liquid down her throat and across the tops of her breasts. Nigel immediately took advantage and she arched her back as he kissed his way from her breasts to the long column of her neck.

"Hmmmm, nice," she decided and then gasped as Nigel gently pushed aside the soft garment barely hiding her nipples so he could suckle them. "Oh, very nice."

Nigel's hands came up to brace against her back, pushing her closer to give his mouth more access. When she pulled back again he almost sobbed in protest. "Syd…"

She put her fingers to his lips. "Ssshhh," she smiled and reached sideways to set her glass next to Nigel's on the nightstand, then she shimmied further down. "We have something in the way, here."

Nigel bit his lip as her fingers caught the waistband of his jockeys and pulled them down. He lifted his hips to accommodate her and gasped as her mouth slipped around him. "Sydney!" He would never last if she did that. He was already so close to the edge he thought he might cry if he didn't have her soon. "Please!"

Sydney just smiled around him and continued her task. She was startled when he gripped her shoulders and pulled her up to meet his gaze again.

"No." He carefully rolled her onto her back. "I want you, Sydney," he murmured, offering little kisses against her lips as he spoke. "I want to make love to you. Now, always, forever."

Moved by his words, Sydney opened herself to him and wound her arms around his neck. "Yes. Yes, Nigel. Always." She bit her lip as he entered her and closed her eyes at the thrilling sensation their joining produced.

Nigel took his time, as much as he could anyway, wanting this moment to last. He could hear her moan beneath him, feel her legs press tighter around him as her nails lightly scratched her desire against his back.

"I never…want to stop," he whispered as he thrust slowly, methodically, using every trick he could muster to hold back his release. "I love being inside of you, Sydney."

"L…Likewise." Sydney arched against him. God! He felt so good. He made her feel so good. She never knew it could be like this, never knew this sweet intensity with anyone else. "You…ooohh…God…you make me…feel…so…" She could feel herself building already. "F…fantastic!"

He captured her mouth in a deep, slow kiss that seemed to go on forever, and then she was mewing, her legs tightening around him, her hands urging him to go faster and he obliged.

They reached their cataclysmic release together; the aftershocks seemed to shake them for several minutes afterwards.

"God!" Nigel muttered, when he finally managed to move and carefully rolled off of Sydney to let her breathe. "God!"

Sydney waved her hand at him and silently agreed to whatever deity was listening. What he said, she thought; still too blissfully overwhelmed to remember how to use her tongue.

They lay beside each other panting, their skin glistening with sweat. Finally, managing some energy, Sydney reached across her husband to get her glass of champagne, which she gulped down. "More!" she croaked.

"Oh waiter!" Nigel lifted his hand lazily, seemed disappointed when no one appeared. "They must be off shift."

She gently nudged him. "You'll have to get up."

"Why?" he whined.

"To get the bottle."

"Not possible."

Sydney ran her fingers over his chest, lovingly. "I'm thrusty, Nigel."

He giggled. "Thrusty, are you?"

She grinned and tried to make her tongue work. "Thirsty!"

"I liked the first one better…"

"Nigel!"

"Sydney!"

"Your wife is dying of thirst!"

"Your husband is staving off a heart attack."

She laughed, rolling over on her back and holding her sides. Nigel laughed with her and when they finally got a grip, they looked sideways at each other.

Sydney wriggled her empty glass. "Still thirsty."

"Still fighting death."

She smacked his arm, playfully. "Please?" she kissed his lips.

"I'm naked!" he protested.

"Please?" She kissed his cheeks, his eyelids, his forehead, and then wrapped her free hand around his softening member. "Pretty please?"

"That will do you no good," he tossed. "He's in a coma."

Sydney smiled slowly. "Maybe he needs mouth to mouth?"

Nigel's sleeping anatomy immediately revived at the thought, but he held firm. "If you've the energy for that you've the energy to fetch the bottle."

Sydney laughed and tried to push him out of the bed.

"Fine!" He groaned, tossed back the covers, and reached for his briefs, only to have Sydney snatch them away from him. "I am not an exhibitionist!"

"You've got a great body, Nige." She tossed his underwear clear to the other side of the room and smiled benignly. She couldn't believe he was still so shy about walking around naked; must have something to do with his British upbringing. "Now get us something to drink."

Nigel sighed, rolled off the bed, staggered a moment and then walked over to grab the bottle of champagne. "I've married a niggling woman." He hurried back to the bed and practically dove beneath the covers, much to Sydney amusement.

"I'm not…whatever that word was, I'm encouraging." Sydney grinned as he filled their glasses and set the bottle on the nightstand. She took a generous swallow, and then sighed as he plumped the pillows behind him so he could sit up. She curled into his chest almost immediately. "So, what do you wanna do now?"

Nigel sipped his champagne, thinking he should really be drinking water because he would have a massive headache in the morning. "Give me a few minutes and I'll find something for us to do."

Sydney grinned and sipped her drink quietly. It was nice, lying here with him, cuddled up in bed on their wedding night. She looked at her rings and sighed in wonder. She was a married woman. Who would have thought she'd ever get this far in a relationship?

"Nigel?"

"Hmmm?"

She glanced up at him, he'd set his glass on the table, leaned back and closed his eyes; but he wasn't asleep because the hand that was around her shoulders was still lightly caressing her.

"I love you."

He smiled but didn't open his eyes. "I love you, too."

"Did you ever think about us, like this I mean?"

"Recently or before?"

"Before."

He opened his eyes to look at her. "Sometimes," he admitted. "How could I help it, you being who you are?"

Sydney was touched by the compliment and laid her head on his chest. "I did to," she confessed. "Especially when we were in a bad situation. I thought, I should really explore something with Nigel, but then I thought what if he doesn't feel the same? Then I'd think, well, he's already told me he loves me, but then I'd think that you only meant it as a friend." She lifted her head to meet his eyes again. "What do you suppose that means?"

"Sweet Christ!" He reared up, startled. "I've married Claudia!"

She laughed and pulled him back. "Nigel! I'm serious."

"It means you think too much."

She smacked at his chest. "Besides that!" she grinned

"Who cares?" He shrugged and wrapped his other arm around her. "We're here now, that's all that matters."

She sighed and snuggled against him. "I suppose."

They lay that way for several minutes, silently caressing each other and finding absolutely no need to verbalize their love and contentment.

At some point, their caresses became more urgent and more intimate and before long, they were making love again and again; after all; it was their wedding night.


	41. Unexpected Surprise

DISCLAIMER: RH characters not mine, but all other aspects of the story are, so please do not print, copy or reproduce without my permission. Another long chapter and I hope that it will encourage you to review. This is the very last chapter. A small epilogue will follow, but the story is officially done. Thanks for reading and being so patient for me to finish.

**CHAPTER FOURTY ONE**

Nigel found the envelope in his inside suit pocket the following morning as they were dressing to meet her father and Jenny for breakfast, before they flew back to Hawaii. He had picked the jacket up from where Sydney had tossed it the night before, intent on hanging it up, and a long white envelope fell onto the floor.

He had already shown Sydney the cheque from Randall and they had received similar 'donations' from the Sultan, Preston, and many others, which they had put in an endearing little 'gift box' that Karen had done up for them. It now sat on the dresser of their suite.

This was apparently one they had missed. "What's this?"

Sydney turned from where she was sliding into a yellow and pastel green sundress. "What?"

"Did you put this in here, Syd?" he asked as he tossed the jacket back on the chair and looked at his name scrawled across the envelope.

"No." Sydney hooked a pair of gold dangling earrings in her ears. "Is it another cheque?"

"I don't know." Nigel slit the seal on the envelope and pulled out a collection of folded papers and a set of keys. "What in the world?" He unfolded the papers. "Hey, maybe we have our first customer…" His eyes widened as he read over the first paper and then turned to the next.

"Nigel?" Sydney asked, concerned by Nigel's sudden expression. "What is it?" She grabbed the papers from his hands as he slowly dropped into an arm chair.

"It…It's a…," he croaked and stared at the key in his hand as he pulled a photograph from the envelope. "He…he gave us…."

Sydney glanced over the deed to four acres of land in North West England. "What?" she scowled. "What is…I don't understand…"

Nigel was still staring at the key in his hand and photo, in shock, as Sydney read the hand written note, aloud.

**_Here is what you 'need to know'_**

**_Home is where the heart is and the heart loves best when it has somewhere to call home. As a man who has spent his life pretending to be someone else, It is a joy and an honor to know two people who are never afraid to be exactly who they are._**

**_Accept this home from someone who has never had one, for it suits your needs and your hearts best. Be happy and never stop being true to yourselves. _**

**_D._**

"He gave us the house, Syd!" Nigel finally managed as he turned a trembling hand to show her the photo of the Brownstone they had wanted. "Sweet God in Heaven. Derek gave us our bloody house!"

Sydney gaped at the picture, and then dropped down on the chaise next to him, stunned. She took the photo from Nigel with shaking hands. "It…there has to be…" She frantically skimmed through the legal documents and Derek's note again. Where was the angle? "What could he gain by doing this?"

"Gain?" Nigel asked, alarmed. "Sydney! For God Sake! He just spent almost seven million pounds on our bloody dream house and gave it to us! What could he possibly have to gain?"

Sydney stared at the paperwork, then at the picture, looking so hard for a reason that her eyes started to blur. "There has to be something…"

Nigel gripped her shoulders. "There is a reason, Syd," he said quietly. "You just don't want to believe it."

Sydney stared into Nigel's eyes, saw the faith he had in Derek and wanted to have that faith too. "But, he said…what he said before…"

"I don't care what he said before."

"Nigel, he said…"

"I don't care! Whatever argument the two of you had is past and I don't need to know."

"Nigel!" It irked her that he used that particular phrase.

"Sydney." He placed his hands over hers that held the photograph. "Who does this? What kind of person does this?"

Sydney knew the answer, but she refused to say it aloud. "How did he know?" she demanded. "How did he know about the house? We didn't tell anyone and…"

"What does it matter?"

Sydney stared at the picture of the house, _their_ house with Foxbail Consulting set for the ground floor. All her original visions of what they could do with the place came flooding back.

They couldn't accept something like this, especially not from Derek Lloyd. There had to be strings…and yet, his note had been endearingly sweet. Damn it, she wanted this house!

"That asshole!" she said suddenly.

"Sydney!"

Well?" She moaned. "Now I _have_ to like him!"

Nigel smirked, but remained silent.

"No." She shook her head. "We can't accept this."

"Excuse me?"

"It's too much!" At least from someone like Lloyd.

Nigel wanted to physically shake the stubbornness out of her. She couldn't…or wouldn't trust Derek Lloyd; even after all he had done. It made him furious, but it also made him sad. That was why he didn't yell at her, or accuse her of defaming his friend, or try to shame her for being so unforgiving.

He'd learned long ago that arguing with Sydney was a waste of time, so instead he worked around her obstinacy by doing what he always did, agreed with her while presenting the facts of the case.

"You're right." He rose and moved to the closet where the staff had already hung up their clothing. He selected a pale blue button-down.

"Yes, good." Sydney was surprised that Nigel would give in so easily, and was slightly disappointed as well. "I'm glad you agree."

"After all, it hardly matters that it is absolutely perfect for us."

"It is, isn't it?" she said, miserably as she watched him pull the shirt on, immediately missing the sight of his naked chest.

"It hardly matters that we haven't been able to find anything else even close to it to suit our needs?" He fastened his shirt and moved to the vanity mirror to straighten the collar, met Sydney's gaze in the reflection. "Right?"

"Maybe we're just too picky…"

"Perhaps." He picked up his watch and fastened it around his wrist. "I mean, who _really_ cares that it has great historical value that would tie in great with the business?"

She'd thought of that. Damn it she'd thought of it! "It's too much, Nigel…"

"Or that Betty wanted us to have it."

"Nigel! Stop! Please!"

"We certainly can't afford it."

"Exactly. It's far too much and…"

He turned sad, puppy-dog eyes to her. "I wonder if it comes with the books."

Sydney glared at him. "That's not fair!" she growled and crossed her arms over his chest. She knew how much he would love those books. How much she would love for him to have them.

It was simply too extravagant a gift, and as much as she appreciated Derek, albeit begrudgingly, for offering them something so fantastic, her pride refused to allow her to accept something so generous from anyone.

"We'll be okay," Nigel decided as picked up her brush and an elastic from the vanity, then moved to stand behind her. Slowly, he pulled the brush through her hair. "The two of us, poor little Maftet, in my tiny flat for another year or three or four, right?"

Sydney did not want to stay in that apartment, it was far too small for them and all of her things were still in storage. She missed having her things around her. They'd struck out finding a place they liked well enough to rent or buy as well.

"We'll find another place," she said, as Nigel's strokes with the brush started to soothe her. "I'm sure of it. "Reasonably sure.

"You're right, of course." He brushed her hair until it was shining, then he parted it three ways and started to braid it. "I'll let you tell your father we can't accept his cheque, then."

"What?" Sydney's head immediately spun around to look at him, but he still had hold of her hair and she had to face forward. "That isn't the same thing!"

She'd been touched and delighted when Nigel had shown her the cheque from her father and Jenny and she almost hugged her father to death in gratitude. He was right, she hadn't considered all the expenses and it would help enormously.

Nigel took his time pulling the three parts of Sydney's hair into a single braid; as his mother had shown him how to do long, long ago. He loved the feel and texture of her hair against his fingers, plus he wanted to do a good job.

He decided to use Randal's approach because he firmly believed they needed that house. "Syd, we've spent our lives trying to find and restore pieces of history so that everyone had the opportunity to learn from them. We've given up a lot for that, having personal lives, sleeping in despicable places, putting ourselves at risk."

"That is beside the point!"

Okay, he'd go another route. He wasn't proud of himself for it, but the Brownstone was too good to pass up. "Derek owes us."

"What?" Again she tried to turn and ripped the hair from Nigel's fingers. "Don't be ridiculous!"

Nigel firmly turned her head forward again. "Stay." He grasped her hair and started again. "How is that ridiculous?"

"He doesn't owe us…"

Nigel parted her hair again, quickly but neatly prepared a long, single plat then and tied off the braid, pleased with the result. "He kidnapped me." He walked around and sat beside her as he held up two fingers. "Twice!"

"It was only once…"

"What about Rome?"

"He… brought you back and that still doesn't justify this kind of…of endowment!"

"Doesn't matter, he can't be trusted and he has made things difficult in the past." Nigel insisted. "He lied to us, put us in danger all to suit his needs; or worse, his mission."

"Nigel!" She was shocked that he would turn against Derek so quickly. "I thought he was your friend?"

Nigel shrugged. "What does that matter? He owes us big time, so we should claim the marker and take the house."

"Now look, Derek saved me, or helped you to save my life. He paid for all the medical attention we needed when we'd been hurt and…and he did take down the Gural Nataz…"

"Oy! He bloody well had help there!"

Sydney glowered at him, because he still hadn't told her how they had done it or what was involved. "The point is, he's more than paid his debts, Nigel, and we can't keep holding the past over his head."

Nigel dropped his hand over hers. "Isn't that exactly what you've been doing, Sydney?"

Sydney flushed with shame. "That's different."

"Why? Because you're attracted to him? Because you and he had an affair and so now you view every lie he's told, every mistake as a personal attack?"

Sydney recoiled in horror. How had he known about her and Derek? "Nigel, it…it was a long time ago! I never…it isn't like that!"

"Sydney." He caught her chin when she tried to avoid his gaze. " Syd, I know you love me. I know you chose me, and I'm not the least bit worried about what you and Derek did in the past, or any of your other ex-lovers. It's in the past, where it belongs."

Had she been holding a grudge against Derek because of their quick, torrid affair? Why would Nigel have allowed Derek to be his Best Man if he knew about their previous relationship?

"I'm sorry."

"It isn't me that you need to say that too."

"Nigel, we can't accept it! I'd feel to…to…"

"Obligated?"

She nodded, miserably.  
Nigel regarded her quietly, then pulled her into his arms and caressed her hair. "I'm not fulfilling my side of our bargain very well, am I?"

She lifted questioning eyes to his.

"To make you smile as often as possible."

That did make her smile and she cuddled into him. "I'm sorry. I do understand what you mean and, but I just don't see how we can accept this and still not feel indentured to him."

Nigel thought about it for a moment, tried to formulate a solution; even while the

delicious scent of her perfume was slowly driving him out of his mind.

"What if offered our services free of charge for the next ten years or so?"

"Are you out of your mind?"

"Sometimes, but aside from that, think about it." He pulled back to look at her.

"He has connections, Syd, major ones. If we do some work for him it could open more doors for more clients."

"He'd never help us, unless there was something in it for him."

"Derek has changed. He's done a lot for us, Syd. Like you said, he saved your life, both our lives. He encouraged me to tell you about my feelings."

"He did?"

"Well, more bullied than encouraged, but the result was the same. You and I are married, and while you don't want to believe it, he is partially responsible for that happening."

Sydney considered Nigel's words, but then she remembered what Derek had said at their wedding and resentment flooded her again. "Nigel, you don't understand. He has you fooled."

Nigel sighed and released her.

"He does! Do you know what he said when I asked him why he was being so nice to you?"

"Why would you ask him that?" Nigel frowned.

"Oh, come on, Nigel! He goes from kidnapping you to being your best buddy? He has to have a reason…"

"You, you mean? You think he is doing all of this to get to you?" Nigel swallowed the hurt her words had caused, he knew she didn't mean to say it like that, but her arrogance was pissing him off. "Sydney! He supported my relationship with you. He watched us get married, stood by and witnessed it and actually threatened anyone to interfere."

"That was a joke…"

"Was it?" Nigel wasn't so sure. "He wants us to be together because of how I feel about you, Sydney. He wants me to be happy because he is my friend."

"Nigel, I'm sure he is fond of you, anybody would be, but men like Derek don't hang out with men like you…"

"Men like me?" Nigel rose and stepped away from her. "What the bloody hell does that mean? Don't you think I can have any friends by my own merit?"

"Yes! Of course!"

"Just not anyone that you've slept with in the past, then?"

"Nigel!"

"Damn it, Sydney. For once this is not about you."

"I'm not saying that!" Sydney shook her head, appalled. "I'm not saying that at all!" She stood and reached for him, relieved when he didn't avoid her.

"It sounds a lot like you're saying that I'm not good enough to be friends with Derek Lloyd!"

"No! All I meant was that you're loyal and intelligent and…and very giving. Derek is a schemer. He doesn't have a loyal bone in his body and doesn't give anything without expecting something in return…"

Nigel stared at her, concerned that her distrust of him ran so deep. "What did he _do_ to you, Sydney?"

She was startled by the question. "You know what he did, Nigel. What he does. He lies and omits and…and…"

"No." Nigel caught her shoulders and locked his gaze on her. "What did he do to _you_, to make you hate him so much?"

"I don't hate him!"

"Sydney…"

She shook her head and lowered her gaze. "I…We can't trust him…"

Nigel had seen the truth in her eyes, however. "He broke your heart."

"No!" Her head reared up. "I never loved him! Not like I love you. I've never loved anyone like I love you." She threw her arms around him, scared to death that her curse had struck again, that she was ruining her relationship by being too honest; and too suspicious. "He doesn't mean anything to me!"

"He means enough that you refuse to forgive him."

"I can't forgive him!" she cried. "I don't even think about…It was never…" She pulled back, stared deep into his eyes as her hands framed his face. "He took you from me. He took you from me and I couldn't stop him! Do you have any idea what I went through when I realized you were gone? When you hadn't shown up for work that morning and I realized…"

Sydney bit her lip and moved away, turned her back on him and wrapped her arms around herself as she tried to push back the rising tide of fear that even now, just talking about it, caused.

Nigel was too stunned to react. All of this time, all her resentment toward Derek was because of the fear he'd caused her over his disappearance? He'd known that Sydney was angry when she'd arrived at the location Derek had taken him to; hell she'd almost taken the agent's head off, but he never realized the thought of losing him had pained her so much, never expected her to feel so devastated by it; at least not back then.

Sydney thought about how she suffered when Tslarov had told her Nigel was dead. It had pained her greatly, but they had been in the field and risk was a part of that environment. Derek had taken Nigel while they were home, and supposedly safe at Trinity.

He'd snatched Nigel off the street, with no thought to Nigel's fear, or the suffering it would cause to those that loved him. It was cold and calculating, and Derek deliberately caused her worry just to have her help him find some stupid rogue agent.

Finally, Nigel recovered. "Sydney." He placed his hands on her shoulders, alarmed to find her trembling. "Sweetness, please don't…don't do this to yourself."

She shook her head. "I can't help it. He…he slept with me and then…then took you away from me. He knew just what to do to make me react, to cause me pain."

"No, Syd." Nigel paused. Well, maybe.

Derek had done the one thing that would make Sydney help him, make her come running, and in that he had taken advantage of their relationship. It was an error in judgment, surely, but Derek wasn't the same man he had been and he had to show her that.

"He's changed, Sydney."

"No. He just has you thinking that."

Nigel slowly turned her to face him. "I'm sure he never meant to hurt you, Sydney. He never meant to hurt me either."

"You can't possibly be condoning…"

"No! Of course not. What Derek did was wrong and…and despicable, but Syd, I truly believe he didn't mean to cause this much pain." He pulled her into his arms and held her tight. "Oh, baby. It was so long ago and everyone makes mistakes. You need to forgive him."

"I can't!"

"You can!" he mimicked, so perfectly in her American accent that she lifted her eyes to his, startled. "See, I can do that too." He almost got a smile out of her, but then she hid her face against his shoulder again. "Aw, Sydney."

He couldn't believe such animosity had been festering inside her all this time. "We've had a dozen people that have deliberately wanted to hurt us. We've been kidnapped, tied up, beaten, almost sacrificed…" He pulled back and caught her chin. "Those people deserve your anger, but Derek truly doesn't."

"Why do you like him so much?"

Nigel thought about it. "I reckon he grew on me," he admitted. "Yes he was pompous and deceitful at times, but…He was also funny and engaging and…" He paused as he considered how to properly put his next thoughts into words. "He talked _to_ me, Syd, instead of at me. Even when we were with him on one of his missions he wanted my input, accepted my suggestions without getting approval from you first; the way everyone else seemed to. He was the first person we'd met on our adventures that actually seemed to like chatting with me and wasn't doing it to get on your good side."

"But he was trying to get to me. He used you to…"

"Yes, yes I know, but…Once the mission was complete he never needed to talk to me again and…he did." Nigel shrugged. "Even when he kidnapped me, he could have left me tied up until you got there, but he didn't. He released me the minute he hung up from you, apologized for what he did."

"Nigel… Tslarov did the same thing with me. He led you into a false sense of security so he wouldn't have trouble with you later, so you would convince me to work with him. It's like Stockholm..."  
"No it bloody well wasn't!" he growled. "He put me at ease, Syd, made sure that I was fed and comfortable and he didn't have to do that. No one else we ever had dealings with, whether they kidnapped me or not, ever bothered to be concerned in the least about my feelings."

"He's a skilled manipulator and liar…"

"He wasn't manipulating me! He never asked anything of me after that, Syd. Not one thing did he ask and…And he was the first fellow outside of university that actually wanted to have a beer with me, to talk with me. I know it doesn't seem like much to you, but it meant a lot to me."

Sydney's heart went out to him. "Were you really so lonely, Nigel? Did working for me stop you from having friends?"

"No, of course not, but it made it more…challenging, and it wasn't even that, Syd." He pulled her over to the chaise to sit down again. "When we worked together everything was about you…"

"No! Nigel, I didn't want…"

"You never slighted me, deliberately, Sydney. It wasn't you." He took her hands again. "Don't you see? It was everyone else. Everyone else that wanted to talk to Sydney Fox. Wanted you to find their relic, you to answer their questions, it was always you."

"I never meant…"

"I know that." Nigel continued quickly when he saw the horror rising on her face. "It wasn't anything you did, it was everyone else. I mean you are Sydney Fox, perhaps the greatest relic hunter in the world, and by far the most intelligent person I have ever known, so of course everyone wanted you."

Sydney was touched by his compliments but still worried that she had caused him to feel inadequate, at any time. "Nigel, you are just as good, sometimes better. I couldn't have done any of it without you."

"That's nice to hear, Syd, really, but I knew going in that you were the headliner and I was the chorus line, which was exactly as it should be." He caressed her face. "But, sometimes, just sometimes, it got to be a bit much always being dismissed or used by the fans of Sydney Fox."

"Oh Nigel." It broke her heart to know he had felt that way. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you speak up for yourself?"

"Because most of the time it didn't bother me and I was happy to let you take the lead."

"But you must have felt so hurt and so…so trivialized! Why didn't you tell me?"

He sighed, frustrated that she didn't understand, and ran his hand through his hair. He had never meant to get into this, certainly not the day after their wedding. He'd never meant her to know at all.

"I'm not explaining this properly. I…" He chewed on his lip for a minute to try and reorganize his thoughts so she would comprehend what he was trying to tell her. "Let me put it this way. Derek and I…hit it off, so to speak, he seemed okay with just chatting with me. He rarely mentioned you, other than to ask how you were, and we…we actually have quite a lot in common."

Sydney snorted in disbelief. "Like what?"

"Well…we're both avid readers and love books, to start," he offered not surprised when she raised her eyebrows in doubt. "We both like old movies. We both love walking in the fog in London." He touched her cheek again. "We've both had our hearts broken multiple times and we're both essentially orphans."

Sydney regarded him quietly and digested his words. She supposed it did help Nigel to have someone to talk to, but she liked those things too and she'd had her heart broken. "Why couldn't you talk to me?"

"I did, to some respect. We…we went to the cinema together and we shared our knowledge of books, to an extent, but it isn't the same, Syd. Sometimes a fellow just needs…well needs another bloke to chat to. A…a mate that isn't…a mate." He screwed up his face. "That didn't come out right."

Sydney shook her head and squeezed his hand. "No. I think I get it now." Just as women needed girlfriends, she was sure men needed boy friends, or buddies to pal around with. She just wished he hadn't picked Derek Lloyd. "I…I mean you don't need me to approve your friends, Nigel."

"No, but it would help if the two of you got along." He framed her face with his hands. "Sydney, people change. I know how hard it is to let go of old resentments, God knows it near killed me to let go of the ones I have for Preston. If I didn't believe that he was a different person now, that he was truly sorry, do you think he would have been dancing at our wedding?"

Sydney shook her head. "No."

"And do you really think that Derek would have encouraged me to be with you, would have stood with me while I married you and would have done this fantastic, wonderful thing in buying our perfect house for us if he didn't care about us, even a little?"

Sydney pursed her lips, knowing he had a point, but she couldn't get Derek's horrible words out of her head. "Nigel, he said he only did all that so he could have us in one place to keep an eye on and so if he needed me in the future he could count on you to turn me to his side."

Nigel stared at her. His lips twitched and started to grow into a smile so quickly that he had to lower his face to avoid her seeing it, but she did see it and it infuriated her.

"How can you laugh? He basically manipulated us into a position that would make it easier for him to use us!"

Nigel bit hard on the inside of his cheek to try and keep himself from laughing. Sometimes, just sometimes, Sydney Fox was so gullible. It took him a minute but he finally managed to blank his expression and meet her angry gaze. "Syd…" He bit his lip, pulled it together again. She looked so furious he almost started laughing again.

"Nigel! This isn't funny! You're _friend_ wants to spy on us!"

"Just…let me ask you this. What exactly did you ask him, Syd?"

"Huh?"

"What exactly did you say that he gave that response?"

Sydney scowled. "What does that matter?"

"Humor me. What did you say?"

"I…I don't remember exactly. I asked him why he was being so nice and…I don't know. Maybe I asked about his intentions or something."

"His intentions?"

"Well! I don't trust him and he proved me right…"

"Because he told you what you expected to hear?" Nigel offered, almost kindly. "Because he knew you wouldn't believe the truth, or perhaps you made him angry by doubting his intentions and so he lashed out?"

"No. It wasn't like that." Sydney paused. "I…He said…" She thought back to her conversation with Derek while they were dancing.

_I know you're not doing any of this out of the goodness of your heart._

_Because I don't have a heart? I couldn't possibly have done it because you and Nigel are my friends and I want to see him happy?_

_I know you, Derek. You always have an agenda, so out with it, and don't give me that need to know crap._

"Sydney?"

She looked at him miserably as a weight settled over her heart.

"You didn't really give him a chance did you?"

She lowered her eyes and shook her head, feeling beyond foolish. Nigel was right. Derek had told her why he'd been so good to them and she didn't believe him. In fact, she'd thrown his admission back in his face. Of course he would try and hurt her back. It was simple self defense.

"Oh, Nigel." She practically crawled into his arms. "I'm an idiot."

Sometimes, he thought, even as he held her, though he would never say it aloud. "You're just protective, luv," he reasoned. "I appreciate that, but you can stop worrying about Derek." He lifted her chin. "Please. For me? Forgive him and let's move on?"

She nodded and hugged him hard. "I'll try," she promised. "I really will try."

"That's all I ask." He kissed her tenderly. "So, can we keep the house, then?"

"Nigel!" She almost laughed. "It's still too much!"

"Not of we make Derek a silent partner."

"A what?"

"A silent partner," he repeated. "His contacts are worth considering, and he can be extremely helpful in certain areas." Nigel watched her closely, sensing she was about to cave.

He was really just giving her the facts and a few suggestions, as he always had, but it felt enough like manipulation to cause a flare of guilt to spike inside him.

"I don't know…"

"You'd hold the final say over everything, just as you always have…"

"We."

"Sorry?"

"I won't make any decisions without you, Nigel. You're the other half of this company and you have just as much weight as I do."

Her words were like liquid sugar and gave Nigel the biggest high he'd ever felt. He was still used to thinking of her as the top dog, but he liked the idea that they had to make decisions together now. "Syd, I trust you to make decisions without me…"

"No, we're equal partners!"

"I believe you!" he assured. "And you have no idea what that means to me. If you need my opinion, or if it is something major of course I would like to be included in the decision, but Sydney, really, you know of the two of us you are far savvier when it comes to the business end of things and the hard choices. I will not be the least bit disgruntled if you use that lovely talent to the very best of your ability."

Sydney nodded, slightly appeased and returned to their original debate. "So…you think making Derek a silent partner is a good idea?"

"He'll probably be away for most of the time doing his 'agent' thing, but when he is there we can consult him on jobs and he will get a portion of any earnings we make, which would alleviate some of the 'obligation' in accepting the house."

Sydney tried to calculate how much earnings they would have to make to pay the agent back for a multi-million dollar house. "And if he had something he needed help with we could certainly offer our services free of charge," she reasoned.

"Of course."

"Only if we get full disclosure, I insist on that."

Nigel nodded and was mentally pushing her. Take it, take it and run with it, Sydney. Pride be damned!

"He might not agree to be a partner," Sydney countered. "He likes his 'Lone Wolf' status."

Nigel considered that and thought back to Derek's note. "Then we sweeten the pot."

"Oh?" Her eyes narrowed. "How is that?"

"You're not going to like it."

"But we can keep the house?"

Nigel nodded and was prepared for her to throw her arms around him and for the sensational kiss that followed.

Sydney smiled into the kiss. As if she ever had a real choice, he would have nagged her to death until she had said yes anyway. And she did love the house, after all.

"Then do whatever you have to, to make him agree," she decided.

"I'll work on that." Nigel's hand slipped under the skirt of her sun dress. "But someone far more important needs my attention right now."

Sydney laughed and pretended to be shocked. "Nigel! We're meeting my father and Jenny!"

"They'll wait," he decided and captured her mouth.


	42. EPILOGUE

DISCLAIMER: RH characters not mine, but all other aspects of the story are, so please do not print, copy or reproduce without my permission. It is now finally finished! What was supposed to be a small epilogue turned into almost another story! I hope you don't mind the length and thank you to all that reviewed!

EPILOGUE

Derek Lloyd entered his hotel room, dropped his duffle bag and set a 12 pack of beer and a large pizza on the small corner table. This last mission had been a bitch. They'd lost two of their agents and the big catch they had wanted had escaped.

But, they got four of his middle men and his right hand guy. They'd talk after a couple of sessions in interrogation, so all he could do was eat, sleep and wait for the next call.

He pulled his laptop out of his bag, set it on the bed and powered it up. Popping open a beer, he grabbed a slice of pizza, returned to the bed and kicked off his shoes. He took a bite of pizza as he logged into one of his many secure E-Mail accounts, to see if any of his snitches had anything for him.

He was pleasantly surprised to find several e-mails, including one with a video attachment from Sir_Gabriel_Lives. He grinned, set his virus software to clear the document before opening and he took several long swallows of beer.

It had been almost four months since Nigel and Sydney's wedding, and this was the first opportunity he'd had to check this particular E-mail.

The first one read simply :_NEED TO KNOW:_ and Derek laughed aloud. "Cheeky bastard," he muttered as he opened the file from Nigel.

'_**You miserable sod!**_**' **it began.

'**_How did you know about the Brownstone and what were you thinking of buying it for us? Now Sydney feels she has to forgive you for past transgressions and…God help us…is even considering letting you come 'round to play with me'_**

Derek laughed again, delighted, and took another bite of pizza as he continued reading.

'_**There is a procedure that needs to be followed, however, one you have employed countless times and frankly taught us to use. The inevitable **__**catch**__**. We have agreed that we cannot accept the house unless the below conditions are met.**_

_**You will become a partner in Foxbail Consulting, thus we can consider the house as your investment in the company. You will have full consideration for any jobs we take (when you are in town), you will receive a portion of the proceeds of the company (whether you are here or not) and you will be allowed to come along with Sydney and me whenever you are free to do so.**_

_**You will have the services of Foxbail Consulting whenever the need arises for one of your 'need to know' cases; however Sydney insists on full disclosure. (I'll leave that to be discussed between the two of you)**_

_**You may have your own apartment on premises to stay in whenever you are in town, and while we understand your job often keeps you away for months at a time, we expect you to try and make it home for birthdays, Christmas and assorted weekends as available.**_

_**Please write me back ASAP as Sydney is eager to move in, but won't until you have agreed to these terms.**_

_**Regards,**_

_**Nigel Bailey**_

Derek reread the e-mail twice and felt an unfamiliar twist in his gut. Never had he expected something like this.

It was actually Randall Fox that had told him about the house; a week before the wedding, as the men were shopping for suits. Randall and Jenny had flown in from Hawaii to stay for three weeks and help with the wedding arrangements. Derek had requested the same amount of time off, which had stunned his superiors; he never asked for time off.

Sydney had mentioned the house to her father because he had been asking if they had found a place to set up the business yet. While Nigel had been changing, Randall mentioned to Derek how he'd like to buy it for them, because his baby had been so excited about it, but he couldn't quite afford that much.

Curious Derek had immediately gone to check out the place. It still hadn't been sold because of a decline in the housing market and because of the price. He felt the house would be absolutely perfect for his friends and fell madly in like with Betty, who after months of waiting just wanted to move, but she refused to sell her house for less than what she felt was its true value. Derek and made her a deal she couldn't refuse and pulled some strings so he could have everything arranged before the wedding.

He suspected it would be a hard sell for Sydney, and he deeply regretted what he had said to her at the wedding, but damn if she hadn't wounded him with her mistrust. It wasn't often he let anyone hurt him, he rarely allowed himself to get that personally involved, but she had a way of pushing his buttons.

He finished off his beer, and then opened the next e-mail from Nigel, which had a video attachment, dated two months ago.

The subject of the e-mail was _**'Never get in the way of a woman and her decorating.'**_ and Derek smirked as he opened the video attachment.

Nigel immediately appeared on screen. "Where the devil are you?" he asked grinning. "Well, Sydney refused to wait on your response, so we've moved in." He panned the video camera to the brownstone, including the large sign over the door that announced Fox-Bail Consulting. "She couldn't be stopped, mate, so you'd better well accept our terms. I shudder to think what will happen if you don't. "

The camera panned back to the front door as Nigel entered, past several workmen were in the front hall building a large circular desk where Karen would greet people.

"This is where the reception area will be, but it's loud in here, so let me go upstairs."

There was an obvious skip where the camera was turned off, and then there was a view of a door.

"Here we are, second floor, mens ware, ladies shoes," Nigel commented from behind the camera in a snotty British accent then chuckled as he reached a hand into view to open the door. "Actually, this will be our place."

He stepped into the parlor area that Derek had seen when he had been at the house; where Betty lived, he recognized it by the huge bay window that brightened up the room. A long sofa and two matching chairs in soft brown leather replaced Betty's older couch and chairs, positioned invitingly near the window. A large, flat screen had been mounted to the wall and Nigel's assortment of movies filled several shelves of an oak entertainment bench.

"This is our sitting room, so far," Nigel announced and panned the camera around the room to show the walls held a collection of Sydney's knick nacks, masks and memoirs. "We're still taking things out of boxes, of course, but we wanted to get this room set up right away to give us a place to relax."

Derek grinned when the screen panned in on long black box on one of the shelves of the entertainment bench.

"This was Claudia's wedding gift to me, some state of the art video game thing. I've never used one in my life so you'll have to come round and show me how to play the thing. There are some games included and she claims it will help me relax, although I have no idea how."

The camera turned towards the kitchen area, where there was a lovely, rounded archway leading to the kitchen adjacent to a window cut out in the wall with a green granite breakfast bar and four small stools. He moved across the parlor through and into the large, spacious kitchen. "This is our kitchen, all new appliances, or within a couple of years or so." He zoomed in on the microwave. "I think this is the one we will be using most as neither I nor Syd can cook worth spit."

Derek took a bite of his pizza and made a mental note to give Nigel some cooking lessons next time he saw him. He scowled as he realized that he was actually considering their offer. He couldn't of course, he couldn't afford to have friends; not in his line of work.

He shook off the sudden melancholy and tuned back to the video.

The camera panned a smaller spiral staircase leading up to the third floor. "That leads to our bedroom and loo, and spans the whole left side of the house," Nigel announced, but instead of going up, he headed through the other archway into what Derek recalled had been Betty's dining room.

"We're going to paint in here," Nigel was saying as he panned around the empty room, and then down to the grey carpet. "And this has to come up. Sydney and I agree that you shouldn't have carpet where you're eating; it just makes it harder to clean."

The camera led through the dining room across a small hallway with a set of double doors against the wall on one side and a large antique wardrobe on the other.

"Laundry," Nigel advised as he pulled open the double doors to show the machines and shelves above it for washing materials. He aimed at the wardrobe, moved closer and opened the doors. "Betty left several pieces behind and I fell in love with this the minute I saw it. It reminds me of the wardrobe that led to Narnia." He reached into the deep closet and knocked at the back. "I already locked Claudia's inside to see if it works, she wasn't impressed with me I'm afraid."

Derek laughed so hard he almost fell off the bed, envisioning Nigel convincing the blonde bombshell to step inside so he could close the door. She must have been livid!

"I imagine Sydney will use it for linens and things." Nigel moved on.

Nigel opened a door and stepped into a large suite, fully furnished. "This is a guest room and the loo is on the other side. He stepped across the bedroom and bathroom through another door into a slightly smaller room, with older furniture. "This will be our personal office, we have a room downstairs as well that will be the company office," he announced and indicated the door to the right. "Also accesses the hallway."

He stepped out into the hallway and the camera was immediately treated to a lovely vision of Claudia dressed in a multi coloured tie-shirt and denim cut offs. She was carrying a box down from the third floor.

"Claudia will be staying with us until she gets her own place," Nigel announced from behind the camera. "Say hi to Derek, Claudia. I'm just showing him the house."

She leaned forward, giving ample view of her cleavage. "Is this like, a web cam? Can he hear me?"

"No, it's a recording I'm making for him."

She leaned closer. "You sure he isn't there?"

"Quite sure and if you don't back up he'll think he's watching an episode of 'Girls Gone Wild.'

"Whatever." She waved her hand and straightened and continued downstairs. "Syd's looking for you."

Nigel panned the camera back to show himself rolling his eyes, then turned it to a last door in the hallway. "We haven't decided for this one yet." He opened the door and gave a quick view of the second room that was empty of furniture, then stepped into the hall.

He panned the camera up the stairs. "Third floor right side will be other guest rooms, mostly, we're having an extra loo installed there."

The camera skipped, and then Nigel's voice appeared again in a different part of the house. "Sorry about that, had to come downstairs and get past the workmen," he offered and then turned the camera around to see Sydney, who was currently on a ladder painting a room a soft shade of blue. "And there is the lady of the house."

"You're supposed to be helping, man of the house," Sydney teased and waved. "Hi Derek!"

"I'll be back to help in a few minutes, I just want to finish this up so I can send it."

"Well, hurry up." Sydney stepped off the ladder and approached him with a smoldering look. "I want to get you dirty so we can have fun cleaning up again."

"Sydney!" Nigel squeaked from behind the camera, and then suddenly the camera was aimed at the floor. "I…you…oh…that…that's quite nice, you…Just let me… Sydney, the bloody camera is still on!"

There was more movement along with Sydney's laughter and then the screen went black.

A moment later, although Derek was quite sure it was more than a moment that had passed, the screen was filled with shelves and shelves of books. "This is my favorite place in the house," he sighed contentedly from behind the camera. "I don't know how you convinced Betty to leave these lovely treasures, but I am forever in your debt, Derek."

Derek smiled, knowing that Nigel would enjoy his little sanctuary.

"Sydney says this room is all mine to do with what I will, and I don't intend to touch a thing! I really can't tell you what it means to have all these wonderful books at my disposal. Anyway, before I get all misty eyed, let's continue the tour." He stepped back into the hallway, walked a few feet then opened another door, which held a treadmill, Sydney's boxing mannequin and a few other gym necessities. "The gym, apparently. I won't be in here much, but Sydney says you are welcome to use it whenever you are here."

"There are two large rooms in the front that will be our reception and office areas," he said as he crossed the hallway to the noise of the workmen and opened up another door that led to a huge parlor area, with sliding wall that he pushed open to reveal a second room. "We were going to offer these rooms as your flat, because they were next to the kitchen, but we found something better, so we're actually going to set these rooms up for seminars and extra classes, when we have the time."

He walked through the large, kitchen. "No idea what she plans to do here," he said as he stepped out the back door. "But it probably won't interest you so let's get to the main feature on your tour."

Derek watched as Nigel crossed along gabled walkway through lush green grass bordered with flowers and trees. "It's a good walk from the house," Nigel was saying as he passed a woodshed, an outdoor pool lined with white sand stone, and a large, closed garage. "We didn't even know it was on the property, until we were up on the second floor and spotted the chimney from one of the guest room windows."

Finally, he stopped by the small guest house, obviously built much later than the brownstone, but in the same terracotta bricks, surrounded by large, lush trees.

"This is your very place." he announced and walked around the structure to record the paved driveway from the side of the house that led off through the a line of trees. "Separate driveway, just off Bakersfield Road, which is north of Junction 19. It's not easy to spot, so I've marked it for you."

He returned to the front off the house and opened the door. "You can change the colors and whatever when you get here and will have plenty of privacy to come and go as you please. We can barely see this place from our house."

The living room was fairly large, had its own wood burning fireplace and was bathed in sunlight light from an enormous bay window. There was currently a dark blue sofa and chair set, wooden end tables and coffee table, and a large oak cabinet chest.

"You'll have to fill it out with furniture, not sure what you would want for your own place," Nigel advised from behind the camera as he opened the cabinet doors and revealed a 47 inch flat screen along with devices below for playing movies. "The tele and toys, however, are from me. A thank you for the library."

Derek grinned again and felt something sharp pull at his heart.

Nigel showed off the open concept kitchenette, separated by a wood-topped island, and a small dinette close to a set of patio doors. He pulled open the doors and showed a small wooden deck area. "Perfect for the occasional grilling party. I'll like my steaks medium, thank you."

Derek's smile started to waver. He honestly couldn't believe they were serious, and not only that but Nigel was talking as if he actually expected them to socialize when and if he moved in. He couldn't understand it. Too many years of being anonymous and closing people off had him flabbergasted that anyone would do so much for him.

He'd been weak with Sydney, and recognized that she had the ability to crash through his barriers and completely destroy the anti-social walls he had erected. That had been the main reason he had ended their affair.

Granted, a portion of their generosity probably came from gratitude for the house, but seriously, they hadn't needed to go to all of this trouble and planning. He shook his head, wondering how he was going to turn them down?

The camera moved to a small alcove off the kitchen that held a laundry area. "Necessities of life, even for a secret agent," Nigel commented showing a close up of the washer and dryer set, then returned to the kitchen and pulled open the refrigerator to show the top shelf stocked with Derek's preferred beer. "More necessities."

Derek smiled, but was alarmed to feel tears prick his eyes at his friend's thoughtfulness. Sonofabitch. He was actually considering accepting their offer. What was wrong with him?

Nigel stepped into a rounded bathroom, fair sized, with a corner shower as well as a bath tub, double sink and commode. "Not much to the loo, but we're men, we don't need much." The camera moved through an open door into a large bedroom that held a king sized bed in cherry wood, with matching dressers and end tables. "This was Sydney's contribution, she hopes you like it, and she says if you don't, then you have no taste."

Nigel moved out of the bedroom, back into the living room and across to another area. "This can be a second bedroom or a den, as you like. But the best thing about it is…" The camera showed Nigel's hand pressing against a section of molding and suddenly a small rectangle of wall moved inward. "A secret room for a secret agent."

The sound of a click had the room bathed in a soft glow as Nigel stepped down three steps to a solid concrete floor. There were no windows, just a floor, cement walls and a selection of shelves on one of the walls. walls that held two antique kerosene lamps. "I think this was meant to be some sort of storm or fallout shelter, but I figure you could store whatever. Syd and I promise to stay out, after all, this will be your flat." He panned back to his face. "Please, no bodies. They'll smell up the place."

The tension that had been coiled inside of him released and Derek laughed, long and hard. He had to rewind the video because he had missed the rest of what Nigel had said.

Nigel set the camera on the kitchen counter and moved in front of it. "So, this is what we are offering. We hope you can accept it in the spirit in which it is given. You'll of course be encouraged to visit us at the main house, and you can have full access to the pool as well as the hot tub, which Sydney insists on installing." His expression grew serious. "There is one thing I feel I have to mention, however and I hope you will also accept it in the spirit in which I give it."

Derek scowled.

"I love you like a brother, Derek, and I hope we can remain friends for as long as possible, but despite what I have told Sydney, I also know that sometimes you do have your own agenda. I am not as gullible as she thinks I am. I don't believe you do in this case, but _if_ you do, you should know that I'm aware of the relationship you had with Sydney previously. I've always known, but it is in the past and that is where it needs to stay. I've already been through this with Sydney and while I am not worried about her betraying me, I do feel I have to say this."

Derek's frown deepened and he set his pizza down.

Nigel moved closer to the camera. "If you have any thoughts, any at all, of taking advantage of myself or of Sydney, of betraying our trust or luring Sydney away from me, just remember what I did to that Gural Nataz agent in Monaco and know that regardless of your connections and multiple identities, I will find you. If you hurt Sydney in any way, I will destroy you."

Derek swallowed, hard. He wasn't easily intimidated, but there was something about such a mild mannered person making such a secure threat that caused his heart to skip a beat. Also, Nigel was his friend, and the fact that he would make such a threat proved to Derek that it was not an idle one.

Nigel stepped back and smiled. "There now. You've seen all of it, I think. Hopefully you can get in touch soon and let us know what you think. I have to go help Syd finish up painting." He waved. "See you soon, my friend."

Derek closed his laptop and sat there, lost in thought. He could pretend that he never received the e-mail. He could stay away from them and disappear from their lives, he was damn good at that, but something in Nigel's tone when he was showing the house told him that the Englishman truly wanted him to accept their offer.

Granted, the warning had been a surprise, but when he considered it, Derek would have done exactly the same thing. He rose to get himself another slice of pizza and another beer.

He did remember the Gural Nataz agent that had cornered Nigel during their operation, when they accidentally got separated in the catacombs of the thieves hide-out. He hadn't been there to witness what the agent had said to set Nigel off, but it had obviously been about Sydney Fox; it always was. When Derek found Nigel, he had a few minor injuries, but the agent…the agent was dead, pierced in the throat by his own knife.

Derek had given Nigel a gun, but he learned later that it had not been fired. Nigel did not discuss what had happened, there hadn't really been time if they wanted to conclude the operation successfully, but nor would he speak about it afterwards.

He sat there thinking about the life he had chosen. He'd been recruited when he was twenty-three and had been an agent for over twenty years now. Promotions had been offered to him, but he couldn't see himself riding a desk, and besides; he honestly felt that he was more valuable in the field.

He had no family to worry about, no one to be concerned if he never returned from somewhere. If he was injured captured or killed. There's be no questions. He was the best kind of CIA agent, completely expendable and practically non-existent. For over two decades that had been enough, now…Maybe it was time for something more. Maybe he should give life another shot.

It wouldn't be easy. There would still be so much he couldn't reveal of himself, yet Sydney and Nigel were opening up their home to him, despite that fact. Could he settle down was the real question. Sure he had cash, passports and weapons stashed in places all over the world and had been in almost every kind of hotel or motel, both five star and flea-bag. He hadn't had a real home in so long he couldn't even imagine what it would be like.

He powered down his computer without replying to Nigel's e-mails. This decision wouldn't be easy. He had some serious thinking to do.

Sydney entered their apartment and immediately heard Frank Sinatra's 'Too Marvelous For Words' playing from the stereo system. She set her purse down, pulled off her jacket, and wandered into the kitchen, where she spotted Nigel dancing to the music as he poured to glasses of red wine.

"I'm home," she announced and felt a little thrill and her own announcement as she and watched him turn and smile at her.

"So you are." He immediately stepped forward to pull her into his arms and danced her around the kitchen. "I missed you."

Sydney could tell that when he pressed his hips against her. "You just want me for my body."

"Absolutely," he agreed. "Who wouldn't? But I also love your mind." She laughed and he sighed. "And that smile. I'd do anything for that smile."

Sydney continued to smile as they danced. "You're in a good mood."

"I am." He touched his lips to hers and pressed against her again. "A very good mood."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Yeah?" She kissed him. "Care to show me?"

They kissed, long and slow, then he pulled back reluctantly. "That will have to wait." He turned, picked up the two glasses of wine and offered her one. "Or dinner will spoil."

Sydney's eyebrows rose. "Dinner? You cooked?"

"Don't be ridiculous, we have to eat it." He wrapped his arm around her waist and guided her to the living room where a candle lit table awaited, set for two, complete with flowers and several delicious smelling dishes. "I ordered from Donatello's."

"Oooh, yummy." She turned in his arms, impressed with the effort he had gone to. "My hero." She kissed him again, slid her free hand down between them and heard him moan in appreciation. "Sure dinner can't wait?"

"You shameless hussy!" He grinned, stepped back and lifted her fingers to his lips. "You can show your appreciation after dinner. Besides, we're celebrating."

"What are we celebrating?" she asked, smiling at him as he held out her chair. She'd spent a long day pitching to the people in the area that might like their service, while Nigel had stayed home to create their website. Karen and Claudia were in the process of booking seminars or classes for them.

Nigel set his wine down in front of the seat across from her and pulled an envelope from his pocket. "FoxBail Consulting's first client."

Sydney was out of her seat in an instant and reaching for the envelope but Nigel held it away from her. "Gimmie!"

"No." He wagged a finger at her. "You can read it after dinner."

"Nigel!"

"I know you, Sydney, and if you read it now, we'll immediately be leaving to fly off somewhere."

"But it's our first one as a company!" She bounced on her heels in excitement and again tried to snatch the envelope. "Come on! Let me see it at least!"

"On one condition."

"Nigel!"

"Only one, Sydney."

"Fine! What?"

He grabbed her with his free hand and pulled her against him. "I want tonight for just the two of us. Deal?"

He looked at her with such need, such love how could she say no? "Deal." She kissed him, then snatched the envelope he held behind his back, ripped the letter out and perused the information. "It's from my friend Marela. She thinks she's found documents pertaining to the recovery of the sword of Joan of Arc."

Nigel nodded, even as he guided Sydney back to her chair and gently pushed her into it. "Joan claimed she found it in the Church of St. Catherine and the voices told her to take it and use it."

Sydney nodded. "Most relics that survived past her execution were thrown into a bonfire by revolutionaries in 1782, and with her body burned and the remains thrown in the river, any possible article of hers would be a phenomenal find."

Nigel filled Sydney's plate from the dishes provided, and then settled in his chair and filled his own. "It would certainly establish us in the history books," he agreed. "And would be great publicity for the company."

"She wants us to come right away." Sydney took a bite of her dinner then focused on the letter again. "She's in France, so it won't be much of a trip. We could get Karen to arrange…"

"All the arrangements are made," Nigel advised as he scooped up some pasta. "We leave tomorrow morning."

"For our air fare, or maybe we should…" She paused as his words sank in. "What?"

"I called Marella as soon as I received the letter, told her to expect us tomorrow morning and Karen already has us booked in at the Marseau. Renee LaPierre is on standby at Jean Moulin, if we need anything authenticated or dated and, I've already refreshed my memory on everything Joan of Arc." Nigel took a bite of his food and rolled his eyes. "God, this is good." He chewed, set his fork down and reached for his wine as his gaze settled back on an open-mouthed Sydney. "What?"

"I…You did all this? Before I even read the letter and decided we'd go, you made all the arrangements?"

"There was no question you'd accept the request." He smirked and sipped his wine. "And this is what I do, remember? This was the reason you hired me originally- to research and assist."

Of course, but she had honestly forgotten how good he was at it. For the last several years she had been relying on herself or Karen; she'd forgotten how damn good Nigel was at anticipating her needs and providing for them. He'd made set up their website, dealt with whatever tasks regarding the company that had been on his agenda, researched and arranged for their first hunt and prepared a candle-lit dinner for her.

"Nigel…" It wasn't that she didn't appreciate all he had done, she most certainly did, but she wanted him to understand that he wasn't her assistant anymore. He was her partner. "I…Thank you for doing all of that…all of…" She gestured to the meal. "This, but I don't expect you to…" How did she word it without offending him? "You're not my assistant anymore. You can let Claudia or Karen do…most things."

He smiled at her. "I don't mind," he assured and took another bite of pasta. "We can both do whatever needs doing, now will you please eat before your food gets cold."

She stared at him only a moment longer, before setting the letter aside and picking up her fork. "I love you," she sighed and took her first bite of pasta. "And this is wonderful. Thank you."

Sydney pulled up to Foxbail Consulting and switched off her jeep. She sat for a moment, exhausted but elated to be home. It felt good coming home. Their hunt for the sword had been victorious, although it certainly hadn't been as cut and dried as they had hoped. It felt odd at first to charge her friend for their services, but Marealla seemed impressed that Sydney had her own company now. She also reminded Sydney that as the University was no longer paying her a finder's fee, she had to get money from somewhere.

It had taken them almost three full days to find the sword, based on the information and clues they had, and then they had to fend off several French zealots, part of a secret sect that still believed St. Joan was a witch and denied her canonization by the church.

It had been just like old times, both of them working towards a common goal and dispatching any trouble that came their way. She had been a little surprised that instead of letting her handle their attackers, Nigel had jumped into the fray and dealt with his fare share.

She'd been immensely proud of him, and, although loathe to admit it, extremely grateful. She wasn't as young as she used to be and despite her rule of keeping in shape, her reflexes weren't what they once were, and she felt the blows far more than she used to.

They'd managed to dispatch the trouble and found the sword. It had been a wondrous moment for both of them, and Sydney had felt a thrill when Marella handed over a check for their fee, and then the three of them presented the sword to the Musée Jean Moulin. The Museum promptly offered to set up a retainer for Foxbail Consulting, for any future finds.

Sydney turned her head and smiled at Nigel who was snoozing in the passenger seat. She reached a hand across and shook his shoulder. "Hey, baby. We're home."

Nigel's eyes fluttered open and he sat up, wearily. "Thank God. I think I'm going to sleep for a week."

Sydney stepped out of the jeep. "Well, at least for a few hours." She opened the back and retrieved her satchel and small suitcase; smiling when Nigel immediately took the case from her and reached in for his own. "We did good."

"Yes, we did." They headed up to the house and tried the door, surprised to find it locked. "It's Saturday," he reminded as Sydney pulled out her key.

"Is it really?" she asked as she pushed open the door and they stepped inside. "I've lost a day somewhere."

Nigel stopped at Karen's desk and set one of the bags down to pick up the mail from their in tray. "I've lost two." He paused as the sound of music and laughter caught his attention. "It is Saturday, right?"

Sydney nodded and moved towards the back of the house. "If Claudia is having another party I will strangle her."

Nigel smirked, tossed the mail back in the tray and hurried after her.

"I thought you were tired?" she teased as they entered the kitchen.

"Never too tired to see two birds fighting," he assured as he held open the back door for her. "Will there be Jello?"

She laughed and swiped at him playfully as the music grew even louder. They headed down the path and could see that the festivities were at the pool. She spotted Karen and Aaron in the pool and Claudia lounging by the side.

"Syd!" Claudia, in a barely there two piece yellow bikini waved cheerfully from her lounger. "You're back!" She jumped up and hurried over to hug Sydney and then turned to Nigel, who flushed bright red at having 105 lbs of a wriggling, curvaceous, half-naked bombshell pressed against him. "Honeybun! How was the hunt? Did you find the sword? Did you have any trouble? Are you hungry? We have steaks on!"

Sydney glanced past Claudia to the man standing at the patio grill in a tall white chef's hat. Aaron was in the water, so who was this? "Who?"

The person turned, showing off a red body apron that read 'License To Grill' and Sydney's jaw tightened before she could help it.

"Derek!" Nigel pried Claudia away and hurried across the deck to greet his friend. "You're here!"

"So it seems," Derek agreed, set down the utensil he had been using to turn the steaks, and picked Nigel off his feet in an enthusiastic bear hug.

Hearing Nigel's delighted laugher at seeing Derek warmed Sydney's heart and she felt the most of her resentment melt away. She had been aware that she would be seeing him again, after all they'd invited him here. It was the only way she could abide accepting the house, but she couldn't help herself, she was still angry with him. She did believe that Derek had done everything for Nigel, that he was a good friend to Nigel, so the onus would be on her to let go of her bitterness towards Derek.

Nigel grinned and clapped Derek on the shoulder. "You've accepted our offer then?"

"You made it seem impossible to refuse."

Nigel's smile broadened. "You took your bloody sweet time about it."

"I never do anything without weighing all the options." Derek turned his attention to Sydney as she approached. "And I need to know that the offer is acceptable to you both."

Nigel stepped back as Sydney reached them, and regarded her quietly. It had to be her decision and she needed to face up to it directly.

"Sydney, about before…at the wedding…" Derek had felt horrible for what he had said and felt the need to apologize; especially as he faced her. "I never…"

"It doesn't matter." Sydney shook her head, stepped in and put her arms around him. "Welcome home."

Derek had struggled with the decision to come here, and in the end he had been sure that Sydney would make the choice irrelevant. Despite their proposal, he could not believe she wanted him here, and so he wouldn't really have to make the decision.

However, once he arrived, seeing the cottage that they offered him and enjoying the companionship of Karen and Claudia, once they warmed up to him anyway, had been and eye opener. He couldn't remember the last time he had gone anywhere that he didn't have to concentrate on his mission or where he hadn't needed to use his skills of manipulation to get information.

Claudia made him laugh and Karen, always the perfect hostess, made him feel extremely welcome, offering to take him shopping for necessities, while her husband Aaron connected with Derek about his one secret pass time, soccer. After only a day among them, he felt more at home, more welcome and more relaxed than he could ever remember being.

He had just started to relax around them when Sydney and Nigel arrived and Derek was startled at how good it felt to see them, both of them. He had also felt a knot of anxiety curl inside his stomach at the initial look Sydney had cast him.

Slowly, he returned her embrace, but ended it quickly. "Are you sure?" he asked as he pulled back. "I won't stay unless you're sure, Syd."

She held his gaze and nodded. "I'm sure, Derek. You're a good friend, to both of us."

Derek's eyes closed and he released the breath he had not been aware he had been holding. "Okay then." He smiled and the charming agent returned. "So, how do you like your steak?"


End file.
